GIFT  OF 
Ella  Sterling  Mighels 


THE  OLD 

OLD  FAIRY  TALES 


COLLECTED    AND    EDITED 


BY  MRS.  VALENTINE 

Author  of  "  Sea  Fights  and  Land  Battles,"  "  The  Knight's 


Ransom,"  etc. 


FULLY  ILLUSTRATED 


A.  L.  BUKT,  PUBLISHES, 
52-58  DUANE  STREET,  NEW  YORK. 


•IT  or 

A 

(7 

. 
-,  s 


5 
3 

3 


PREFACE. 


?  HDB  tales  contained  in  this  volume  have  been  the  de- 
ligh  of  many  generations  of  children,  and  can,  in  fact, 
cla^  a  a  very  distant  origin,  though  they  were  retold  in 
their  present  form  as  late  as  the  age  of  Louis  XIV. 
They  are  generally  supposed  to  have  come  from  the  East, 
for  le  are  to  be  found  in  varied  forms  in  all  the  coun- 
trie^  of  Europe  that  sent  forth  Crusaders. 

The  earliest  collection  of  these  stories  in  prose  was 
made  by  Straparola,  a  native  of  Garavaggio,  in  the  Mi- 
lanese, and  published  by  him  at  Venice  in  his  "Notti 
Piacevoli,"  in  1550.  They  were  translated  into  French 
in  1560,  and  from  them  the  well-known  "Contes  des 
Fees"  were  principally  taken. 

As  children  always  like  stories  to  be  retold  in  the  same 
words  as  far  as  possible,  these  tales  have  not  been  rewrit- 
ten (except  in  two  cases);  the  original  translations  in 
their  quaint  simplicity  have  been  collected,  and  merely 
corrected  so  far  as  to  meet  the  modern  ideas  of  the  kind 
of  tale  to  be  given  to  children;  the  old  ones  being  occa- 
sionally a  little  coarse. 


90S949 


CONTENTS. 


HM9 
Goody  Two  Shoes I 

Patty  and  her  Pitcher 15 

Blanche  and  Rosalind ,.„..     29 

Fairer  than  a  Fairy 84 

The  Three  Soldiers  and  the  Dwarf 57 

The  Giant  with  the  Golden  Hair 64 

Blue  Beard 70 

Diamonds jmd  Toads. 77 

Fortunio 81 

Prince  Fatal  and  Prince  Fortune 114 

The  Beneficent  Frog 124 

The  Story  of  Prince  Sincere 148 

Princess  Rosetta 171 

Babiola..   .... 0..  188 

The  Story  of  Prince  Tito 195 

The  Three  Bears 216 

The  Good  Little  Mouse 225 

Septimus 241 

Prince  Desire  and  Princess  Mignonetta 276 

Princess  Minikin 284 

Prince  Cherry 819 

The  Princess  Maia... , 833 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


GOODY  TWO-SHOES. 

Iff  the  latter  part  of  the  reign  of  Queen  Bess  there  was 
an  honest,  industrious  countryman  named  Meanwell,  liv- 
ing upon  a  small  farm  which  he  held  under  Sir  Peter 
Gripe,  a  very  hard,  covetous  landlord,  who  was  per- 
suaded by  one  of  his  richer  tenants,  Hugh  Graspall,  as 
greedy  as  himself,  to  take  away  the  lands  held  by  Mean- 
well  and  other  poor  tenants,  and  let  him  have  them  to 
increase  his  own  large  farm. 

When  Meanwell  was  thus  cruelly  turned  out  of  his 
little  farm,  which  had  enabled  him  to  support  a  wife  and 
two  young  children,  called  Tommy  and  Margery,  he  tried 
in  vain  to  find  another  cottage  with  land.  Care  and  mis- 
fortune soon  shortened  his  days;  and  his  wife,  not  long 
after,  followed  him  to  the  grave.  On  her  deathbed  she 
did  not  repine  at  her  losses  and  sufferings,  but  humbly 
prayed  that  Heaven  would  watch  over  and  protect  her 
helpless  orphans  when  she  should  be  taken  from  them. 
At  her  death  these  poor  children  were  left  in  a  sad 
plight;  and  as  there  were  but  few  people  in  the  village  of 
Mouldwell,  where  they  lived,  able  to  befriend  them,  they 
could  get  no  regular  meals,  and  had  to  make  all  sorts  of 
shifts  to  keep  themselves  from  starving.  At  times,  in- 
deed, they  were  obliged  to  put  up  with  the  wild  fruits 
and  berries  that  they  picked  from  the  hedges.  They 
were  also  without  proper  clothes  to  keep  them  warm; 
and  as  for  shoes,  they  had  not  even  two  pairs  between 
them.  Tommy,  who  had  to  go  about  more  than  his  sis- 
ter, had  a  pair  to  himself;  but  little  Margery  for  a  long 
time  wore  but  one  shoe. 

These  two  children  in  all  their  trials  never  ceased  to 
love  each  other  dearly,  nor  did  they  forget  the  good  les- 
sons which  their  kind  mother  had  taught  them.  And 


2  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

W-eTl  did  th&y  deserve  her  anxious  love,  and  the  earnest 
prayers  she  had  offered  up  to  Heaven  for  their  welfare. 
They  never  murmured,  nor  ever  thought  of  taking  any- 
thing from  their  neighbors,  however  hungry  they  might 
be,  but  were  always  looking  out  for  some  sort  of  work, 
although  but  little  of  that  did  they  get.  But  this  hard 
lot  really  befell  them  for  their  good;  for  without  it  how 


could  their  excellent  qualities  have  been  so  well  brought 
out,  and  their  praiseworthy  conduct  have  become  the  talk 
of  the  village? 

Heaven,  indeed,  had  heard  their  dying  mother's 
prayers,  and  had  watched  over  and  protected  them 
through  all  their  troubles.  Relief  was  at  hand,  and 
better  things  were  in  store  for  them.  It  happened  that 
Mr.  Gpodall,  the  worthy  clergyman  of  th^  parish,  heard 
of  their  sad  wandering  sort  of  life — for  tney  were  with- 


'  *         ;   *  '     •   • 

•.  - 
• 

•  ~ .  , 

•    • 

.  . . :  . 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  3 

out  a  home,  and  had  generally  to  sleep  in  some  barn  or 
outhouse — and  so  he  sent  for  the  two  children,  and 
kindly  offered  to  shelter  them  until  they  could  get  regu- 
lar work  to  do.  Immediately  after  this  unlooked-for 
blessing  had  fallen  upon  them,  a  gentleman  of  rank  and 
wealth  came  from  London  on  a  visit  at  the  parsonage; 
and  no  sooner  did  he  hear  the  story  qf  the  orphans  than 
his  heart  warmed  toward  them,  and  he  resolved  to  be 


their  friend.  The  very  first  thing  he  did  was  to  order  a 
pair  of  shoes  to  be  made  for  Margery,  and  he  also  placed 
money  in  her  hand  to  buy  good  and  suitable  clothes 
with.  But  he  did  much  more  than  this  for  Tommy. 
Not  only  did  he  get  clothes  for  him,  but  he  offered  to. 
take  him  to  London  if  he  would  consent  to  go,  promis- 
ing to  put  him  in  a  way  to  do  well  by  going  abroad, 
after  he  had  acquired  sufficient  knowledge  to  fit  him  for 
such  a  step. 

When  the  time  arrived  for  her  brother  to  start  off  with 
his  generous  friend,  Margery  was  in  great  trouble,  and 
her  eyes  filling  with  tears,  they  embraced  each  other  over 
and  over  again;  but  Tommy,  in  order  to  comfort  his 
weeping  sister,  promised  he  would  not  fail  to  come  over 


4  OLD,  OLD  FAIRT  TALES. 

to  Mouldwell  to  see  her,  when  he  should  return  from 
foreign  countries. 

After  he  was  gone  Margery  began  to  recover  her  usual 
cheerfulness.  She  knew  it  was  of  no  use  to  keep  on  cry- 
ing; but  what  helped  greatly  to  put  her  into  good  spirits 
was  the  pleasure  she  took  in  her  new  shoes.  As  soon  as 
the  old  shoemaker  brought  them  she  put  them  on,  and 
ran  at  once  to  the  clergyman's  wife,  crying  out  with  glee, 
as  she  pointed  to  them: 

"Two  shoes,  ma'am!     See,  two  shoes!" 

These  words,  "two  shoes!"  she  kept  on  repeating  to 
everybody  she  met,  and  by  this  means  came  to  be  called 
for  a  long  while  after  by  the  name  of  GOODY  TWO-SHOES. 

Now  Margery  was  a  thoughtful  little  girl;  and  after  she 
had  lived  at  the  parsonage  some  time,  she  noticed  more 
and  more  how  good  and  wise  the  clergyman  was,  and  she 
could  only  suppose  that  this  was  owing  to  his  great 
learning.  The  poor  girl  then  felt  ashamed  of  her  own 
ignorance,  and  was  most  anxious  to  learn  how  to  read 
and  write,  although  at  that  time  in  distant  country 
places  very  little  instruction  was  given  to  poor  children. 
Mr.  Goodall,  however,  when  he  found  how  desirous  she 
was  to  improve  herself  in  every  way  kindly  taught  her 
what  she  most  wished  to  know.  As  he  was  a  clever  man, 
he  took  care  that  she  should  not  learn  by  rote;  so,  as  she 
advanced,  he  made  her  think  well  over  each  lesson,  and 
though  this  made  her  progress  a  little  slower,  she  became 
in  good  time  a  better  scholar  than  any  of  the  children 
who  went  to  the  village  school.  As  soon  as  she  found 
that  this  was  the  case  she  began  to  reflect  that  it  was 
her  duty  to  devote  some  of  her  spare  time,  with  Mr. 
Goodall's  permission,  to  the  instruction  of  such  poor 
children  as  could  not  go  to  school.  After  much  think- 
ing and  contriving,  she  hit  upon  a  simple  but  clever  plan 
to  get  these  ignorant  children  to  attend  to  her  teaching. 
She  knew  that  the  different  letters  of  the  alphabet  were 
sufficient  to  spell  every  word — only  that  those  used  as 
capital  letters  were  larger  than  the  others.  Now  as  very 
few  books  were  then  printed,  and  they  were  scarcely  ever 
to  be  seen  in  the  hands  of  poor  people,  she  thought  she 
could  get  over  the  difficulty  by  cutting,  with  a  good 
knife,  out  of  several  pieces  of  wood,  six  sets  of  capital 
letters  like  these: 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  6 

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ. 

And  ten  sets  of  these  common  letters: 

abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz. 

When,  after  much  pains  and  trouble,  she  had  finished 
all  these  wooden  letters,  she  managed  with  some  diffi- 
culty to  borrow  an  old  spelling-book,  and,  with  the  help 
of  this,  she  made  her  playmates  set  up  the  words  she 
wished  them  to  spell.  Her  usual  way  with  them  when 
she  could  get  several  of  them  together  about  her  was 
this:  Suppose  the  word  to  be  spelled  was  "Pudding" 
(she  always  chose  words  at  first  that  sounded  pleasantly 
to  her  little  pupils'  ears),  one  of  the  children,  who  were 
placed  in  a  circle  round  her,  brought  the  capital  letter 
"P"  from  the  large  set;  the  next  picked  up  "u"  from 
the  small  set;  the  next  two  a  "d"  each;  the  next  "i," 
and  so  on,  until  the  whole  word  was  spelled.  Margery, 
in  her  simplicity,  fancied  that  the  first  steps  in  knowl- 
edge ought  to  be  as  much  like  play  as  possible;  and  the 
result  proved  how  right  she  was,  for  her  little  companions 
were  always  eager  for  this  "game,"  as  they  called  it,  and 
were  very  sorry  if  they  were  thrown  out  by  picking  up  a 
wrong  letter,  and  had  to  play  no  more  that  morning. 
Before  long  not  only  her  poor  pupils,  but  their  ignorant 
parents  too,  were  very  thankful  for  the  trouble  she  took 
in  teaching  her  playfellow.s;  and  as  it  often  happened 
they  could  not  be  spared  to  be  with  her  of  a  morning, 
she' would  then  go  found  to  their  different  cottages  to 
teach  them,  carrying  her  wooden  letters  in  a  basket. 

On  one  of  these  occasions  the  worthy  clergyman  asked 
a  friend  of  his,  a  substantial  yeoman  named  Rowland,  to 
accompany  Margery  in  her  rounds,  that  he  might  judge 
as  an  eye-witness  of  the  results  of  her  teaching.  This 
good  man  was  much  pleased  with  all  he  saw  and  heard; 
and,  as  he  gave  his  opinion  in  writing  to  Mr.  Goodall,  we 
cannot  do  better  than  make  use  of  his  own  words. 

"After  setting  out,  Margery  and  I,  we  first  came  to 
Jerry  Hodge's;  and  no  sooner  had  we  tapped  at  the  door 
than  the  cottager's  wife  came  out,  and  when  she  saw 
Margery,  said,  'Oh,  if  it  isn't  little  Goody  Two-Shoes; 
and  I  am  right  glad  to  see  thee,  that  I  be!  Pray  come 
in,  and  this  good  gentleman  too,  that  ye  may  both  see 


6  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

how  well  our  Billy  has  learned  his  lessons.'  The  poor 
little  fellow,  I  found,  could  not  speak  plain;  but  he  had 
learned  all  his  letters,  and  was  quite  able  to  pick  them 
out  and  put  them  together  in  short  words  when  asked 
to  do  so. 

"The  next  place  we  visited  was  Widow  Giles',  who,  to 
protect  herself  at  night,  kept  a  fierce-looking  dog,  and 
the  moment  Margery  opened  the  gate  he  began  barking 
at  a  great  rate.  This  called  out  his  mistress,  who 
scolded  him  sharply  for  daring  to  bark  at  Goody  Two- 
Shoes.  After  quieting  the  noisy  cur  she  asked  us  in, 
and  seemed  very  proud  to  show  how  clever  her  littk ' 
Sally  was  in  learning  her  lessons;  indeed,  T  found  the 
child  was  very  ready  at  spelling,  and  she  pronounced  the 
words  clearly  and  correctly  also. 

"We  then  called  at  Toby  Cook's  cottage.  Here  a 
number  of  children  were  met  together  to  play,  who  all 
came  round  Margery  very  fondly,  and  begged  her  to  'set 
the  game'  for  them.  She  then  took  out  her  wooden  let- 
ters from  her  basket,  an^d  asked  the  girl  who  was  next  to 
her  what  she  was  to  have  for  dinner.  'Apple  pie,'  she 
.answered,  and  went  to  look  for  a  capital  'A;'  the  next 
,two  produced  a  'p'  each,  and  so  they  went  on  until  they 
•had  spelled  'Apple  pie'  complete.  Other  words  were 
given  by  the  children,  chiefly  the  names  of  things  they 
liked  and  were  used  to,  such  as  bread,  milk,  beef,  etc., 
which  were  for  the  most  part  spelled  carefully,  very  few 
mistakes  having  been  made,  until  the  game  was  finished. 
After  this,  she  set  them  the  following  lesson  to  get  by 
heart: 

' He  that  will  thrive  « Tell  me  with  whom  you  go, 

Must  rise  by  five.'    '  And  I'll  tell  what  you  do/ 

'He  that  has  thriven  'A  friend  in  need 

May  lie  till  seven/  Is  a  friend  indeed/ 

'  Truth  may  be  blamed,  Love  your  friends  who  are  true, 

But  cannot  be  shamed/  And  your  friends  will  love  you/ 

"Margery  next  took  me  to  see  Kitty  Sullen.  This 
little  girl  used  to  be  very  self-willed  and  vain,  because 
she  could  dress  more  finely  than  the  poor  cottagers' 
children.  I  was  glad  to  see,  however,  that  she  paid  at- 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  7 

tention  to  Margery's  good  advice;  and  I  hear  it  generally 
reported  that  Madge  has  done  wonders  by  setting  her  an 
example  of  humility  and  kindness,  and  that  she  has 
much  softened  her  stubborn  heart. 

"On  our  way  homeward  we  saw  a  well-dressed  gentle- 
man sitting  under  a  couple  of  great  trees,  at  the  corner 
of  the  rookery.  He  had  a  sort  of  crutch  by  him,  and 
seemed  to  be  ailing.  But  perhaps  this  was  partly  put  on, 
that  he  might  try  Margery's  wit;  for  as  soon  as  he  saw 
us  he  called  out  to  her  to  come  near  him,  and  then  said, 


more  in  jest  than  in  pain/'Bray  little  maid,  can  you  tell 
me  what  I  must  do  to  get  well?'  'Yes,  good  sir,'  she 
replied  readily:  'go  to  bed  when  the  rooks  do,  and  get 
up  with  them  at  morn;  earn,  as  they  do,  what  you  eat; 
and  then  you  will  get  health  and  keep  it.'  The  gentle- 
man seemed  quite  taken  with  the  good  sense  of  her 
reply,  and  with  her  modest  look,  too,  and  begged  her  to 
accept  a  small  silver  coin  as  a  token  of  his  regard  for  her 
merit." 

_  One  day,  as  Margery  was  coming  home  from  the  next 
village,  she  met  with  some  wicked,  idle  boys,  who  had 
tied  a  young  raven  to  a  staff  and  were  just  about  to 


£  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

make  a  victim  of  the  poor  thing  by  throwing  stones  at 
it.  She  offered  at  once  to  buy  the  raven  for  a  penny, 
and  this  they  agreed  to.  She  then  brought  him  home  to 
the  parsonage,  and  gave  him  the  name  of  Ralph,  and  a 
fine  bird  he  was.  Madge  soon  taught  him  to  speak  sev- 
eral words,  and  also  to  pick  up  letters  and  even  to  spell  a 
word  or  two. 

Some  years  before  Margaret  began  to  teach  the  poor 
cottagers'  children  Sir  Walter  Welldon,  a  wealthy  knight 
living  in  the  neighborhood,  had  set  up  an  elderly  widow 
lady,  who  had  seen  better  days,  in  a  small  school  in  the 
village  of  MouldweJl,  that  she  might  teach  the  children 
of  those  who  could  afford  to  pay  something  toward  it. 
This,  gentlewoman,  whose  name  was  Gray,  was  at  length 
taken  seriously  ill,  and  was  no  longer  able  to  attend  to 
her  duties.  When  Sir  Walter  heard  of  this  he  sent  for 
Mr.  Goodall  and  asked  him  to  look  out  for  some  one  who 
would  be  able  and  willing  to  take  Mrs.  Gray's  place  as 
mistress  of  the  school. 

The  worthy  clergyman  could  not  think  of  one  so  well 
qualified  for  the  task  as  Margery  Meanwell,  who,  though 
but  young,  was  grave  beyond  her  years,  and  was  growing 
tip  to  be  a  comely  maiden;  and  when  he  told  his  mind  to 
the  knight,  Margery  was  chosen  by  the  latter  at  once  as 
the  successor  of  poor  Mrs.  Gray.  Sir  Walter  continued 
to  be  very  good  to  the  sick  widow  until  she  died,  which 
happened  shortly  afterward.  He  likewise  built  a  larger 
schoolhouse  for  Margery's  use.  This  she  needed,  for  she 
would  have  all  her  old  pupils  without  payment  about  her 
that  liked  to  come  to  the  school,  as  well  as  the  regular 
scholars  belonging  to  it. 

From  this  time  no  one  called  her  "Goody  Two-Sh'      ' 
but  generally  Mrs.  Margery,  and  she  was  more  and 
liked  and  respected  by  her  neighbors. 

Soon  after  Mrs.  Margery  had  become  mistress  of 
school  she  was  lucky  enough  to  save  a  dove  from  the 
hands  of  some  cruel  boys,  who  were  tormenting  the  poor 
creature,  and  she  called  him  Tom,  in  remembrance  of 
her  brother  now  far  away,  and  from  whom  she  had  heard 
no  tidings  ever  since  he  left  her.  But  in  those  bygone 
days  writing  letters  was  not  much  practiced,  and  there 
was  no  such  thing  as  a  post  office  to  be  seen  anywhere. 
Tom  learned  to  pick  up  a  few  letters,  but  he  was  not  so 


OLD.  OLD  FA1RT  TALES.  9 

clever  as  her  old  favorite  Ealph,  and  of  course  could  not 
be  taught  to  utter  a  single  word. 

About  this  time  a  lamb  had  lost  its  dam,  and  its  owner 
was  about  to  have  it  killed.  When  Mrs.  Margery  heard 
of  this  she  bought  the  gentle  creature  of  him  and 
brought  it  home,  thinking  to  please  and  benefit  her 
pupils  by  putting  such  an  example  before  them  of  going- 
early  to  bed.  Some  neighbors,  finding  how  fond  of  such 
pets  Mrs.  Margery  was,  presented  her  with  a  nice  playful 
little  dog  called  Jumper,  and  also  with  a  skylark.  Now, 
Master  Ealph  was  a  shrewd  bird,  and  a  bit  of  a  wag  too; 
and  when  Will  the  lamb  and  Carol  the  lark  made  their 
appearance,  the  knowing  fellow  picked  out  the  following 
verse,  to  the  great  amusement  of  everybody: 

"Early  to  bed,  and  early  to  rise, 
Is  the  way  to  be  healthy,  wealthy,  and  wise.0 

Mrs.  Margery  was  ever  on  the  lookout  to  be  useful  to 
her  neighbors.  Knowing  more  than  they  did,  she  was 
often  able  to  give  them  good  advice,  and  to  save  them 
from  losses  which  they  were  about  to  incur  through  their 
ignorance.  Many  of  these  good  folks  depended  much  on 
their  hay.  Now,  a  traveler  coming  from  London  had 
presented  Mrs.  Margery  with  a  new  kind  of  instrument, 
a  rough-looking  barometer,  very  inferior  to  those  now 
used,  by  the  help  of  which  she  could  often  guess  cor- 
rectly how  the  weather  would  be  a  day  or  two  before- 
hand. She  made  herself  so  useful,  indeed,  that  they  all 
came  to  her  for  advice,  and  profited  by  it  in  often  get- 
ting in  their  hay  without  damage,  while  much  of  that  in 
the  neighboring  villages  was  spoiled.  This  caused  a 
great  talk  about  the  country;  and  so  provoked  were  the 
people  of  the  distant  villages  at  the  better  luck  of  the 
Mouldwell  folks  that  they  accused  Mrs.  Margery  of  be- 
ing a  witch,  and  sent  old  Nicky  Noodle,  a  numskull  and 
a  gossiping  busybody,  to  go  and  tax  her  with  it,  and  to 
scrape  together  whatever  evidence  he  could  against  her. 
When  this  wiseacre  saw  her  at  her  school  door,  with  her 
raven  on  one  shoulder  and  the  dove  on  the  other,  the  lark 
on  her  hand,  and  the  lamb  and  little  dog  by  her  side,  the 
sight  took  his  breath  away  for  a  time,  and  he  scampered 
oif  crying  out,  "A  witch!  a  witch!  a  witch!" 


10 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


She  laughed  at  the  simpleton's  folly,  and  called  him 
jocosely  a  ' 'conjuror"  for  his  pains;  but  poor  Mrs. 
Margery  did  not  know  how  much  folly  and  wickedness 
there  was  in  the  world,  and  she  was  greatly  surprised  to 
find  that  the  half-witted  Nicky  Noodle  had  got  a  warrant 
against  her, 

At  the  meeting  of  the  justices,  before  whom  she  was 
summoned  to  appear,  many  of  her  neighbors  were  pres- 


ent, ready  to  speak  up  for  her  character,  if  needful. 
But  it  turned  out  that  the  charge  made  against  her  was 
nothing  more  than  Nicky's  idle  tale  that  she  was  a  witch. 
Nowadays,  it  seems  strange  that  such  a  thing  could  be; 
but  in  England,  at  that  period,  so  fondly  styled  by  some 
"the  good  old  times,"  many  silly  and  wicked  things  were 
constantly  being  done,  especially  by  the  rich  and  power- 
ful, against  the  poor — such  things  as  would  not  now  be 
borne.  Among  such  old  blind  follies  was  a  common 
belief  in  witchcraft,  the  practice  of  which  was  severely 
punishable  by  law;  and  many  a  poor  harmless  old 
woman,  against  whom  her  ignorant  neighbors  had  a  spite, 
has  been  tortured  even  to  death,  on  the  stupid  charge  of 
being  a  witch. 

It  happened  that  among  the  justices  who  met  to  hear 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  11 

this  charge  against  Mrs.  Margery,  there  was  but  one  silly 
enough  to  think  there  was  any  ground  for  it.  His  name 
was  Shallow,  and  it  was  he  who  had  granted  the  warrant. 
But  she  soon  silenced  him  when  he  kept  repeating  that 
she  must  be  a  witch  to  foretell  the  weather,  besides 
harboring  many  strange  creatures  about  her.  After 
pointing  to  the  friends  who  had  come  to  speak  for  her 
character  and  her  truth,  she  said  very  calmly,  looking  at 
this  weak  man  full  in  the  face: 

"1  never  supposed  that  any  one  here  could  be  so  weak 
as  to  believe  that  there  was  any  such  thing  as  a  witch. 
But  if  I  am  a  witch,  here  is  my  charm,"  she  added,  lay- 
ing her  weather-glass  upon  the  table;  "this  it  is  alone 
that  has  helped  me  to  know  the  state  of  the  weather. 
And  as  for  my  animal  companions,  your  worship  even 
might  profit  as  I  have  done  by  their  good  example.  My 
tender  dove,"  she  continued"  "is  a  pattern  of  true  love; 
my  watchful  raven  of  forethought;  my  joyous  lark  of 
thankfulness;  my  gentle  lamb  of  innocence;  and  my 
trusty  dog  of  sagacity.  If  it  be  witchcraft  to  have  such 
teachers  to  remind  me  of  my  duties,  then,  indeed,  am  I 
a  witch,  please  your  worship — at  your  service." 

Fortunately  her  patron,  Sir  Walter  Welldon,  one  of 
the  justices  present,  was  well  acquainted  with  the  use  of 
the  new  instrument.  When  he  had  explained  its  nature 
to  his  foolish  brother  justice  he  turned  the  whole 
charge  into  ridicule,  and  finished  by  giving  Mrs.  Margery 
such  a  high  character  for  knowledge,  prudence,  and 
charity  that  the  bench  of  justices  not  only  released  her 
at  once  from  the  trumpery  charge,  but  gave  her  their 
public  thanks  for  the  good  services  she  had  done  in  their 
neighborhood. 

One  of  these  gentlemen,  Sir  Edward  Lovell,  an  inti- 
mate friend  of  Sir  Walter's,  conceived,  indeed,  so  high 
an  opinion  of  her  virtues  and  abilities  that,  having  been 
lately  left  a  widower,  he  offered  her  very  liberal  terms  if 
she  would  consent  to  come  to  his  house,  take  the  man- 
agement of  it,  and  educate  his  daughter  also.  She  re- 
spectfully declined  this  handsome  offer,  for  she  thought 
it  was  her  duty  to  continue  teaching  the  children  of  the 
poor,  who  but  for  her,  she  feared,  would  remain  in  igno- 
rance. 

Several  months  after  this  Sir  Edward  fell  ill  and  was 


12  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

for  some  time  in  a  state  of  danger.  He  then  repeated 
his  request  that  Mrs.  Margery  would  come  to  take  charge 
of  his  house,  now  that  he  was  quite  unable  to  manage  it, 
and  look  after  his  dear  children.  The  thoughtful  young 
woman  then  took  counsel  with  her  kind  old  friend  the 


clergyman,  and  by  his  advice  she  agreed  to  undertake 
the  proposed  employment  until  Sir  Edward's  restoration 
to  health.  She  completely  won  that  gentleman's  respect 
and  admiration  by  her  skill  and  tenderness  in  nursing 
him  during  the  remainder  of  his  illness,  and  by  the  great 
care  she  took  of  his  children.  All  the  members  of  his 
household  loved  her  for  her  goodness. 
By  the  time  that  Sir  Edward  fully  regained  his  health 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  13 

he  had  become  more  and  more  attached  to  Mrs.  Margery. 
He  thought  she  could  hardly  be  matched  for  propriety 
of  conduct;,  for  good  sense,  and  for  sweetness  of  temper; 
and  with  all  this  he  fancied,  too,  that  she  had  not  her 
equal  anywhere  for  good  looks.  It  was  not,  then,  to  be 
wondered  at  that  when  she  talked  of  going  back  to  her 
school  he  should  feel  dull  and  melancholy,  nor  that, 
after  due  reflection,  he  should  offer  her  his  hand  in  mar- 
riage. We  know  already  how  modest  and  free  from 
vanity  and  false  pride  Mrs.  Margery  was.  This  proposal, 
therefore,  took  her  quite  by  surprise,  and  so  undeserving 
did  she  think  herself  of  the  honor  intended  her  that  at 
first  she  was  inclined  not  to  accept  it,  but  this  her  rich 
suitor  would  not  hear  of;  and  as  her  true  friends,  Sir 
Walter  and  Mr.  Goodall,  tried  hard  to  persuade  her  to 
accept  Sir  Edward's  hand,  telling  her  she  would  then  be 
enabled  to  do  many  more  good  works  than  she  had  ever 
done  before,  she  at  last  yielded.  She  had  not  at  all  ob- 
jected because  she  did  not  like  Sir  Edward,  for  she  really 
loved  and  admired  him  as  he  deserved,  but  only  because 
she  feared  it  was  not  her  duty  to  leave  her  old  humble 
friends  to  be  a  fine  lady. 

All  things  having  been  settled,  and  the  day  fixed,  the 
great  folks  and  others  in  the  neighborhood  came  in 
crowds  to  see  the  wedding;  for  glad  they  were  that  one 
who  had,  ever  since  she  was  a  child,  been  so  deserving, 
was  to  be  thus  rewarded.  Just  as  the  bride  and  bride- 
groom were  about  to  enter  the  church,  their  friends  as- 
sembled outside  were  busily  engaged  in  watching  the 
progress  of  a  horseman  handsomely  dressed  and  mounted, 
and  as  gay  in  appearance  as  a  courtier,  who  was  gallop- 
ing up  a  distant  slope  leading  to  the  church,  as  eagerly 
as  if  he  wanted  to  get  there  before  the  marriage  should 
take  place.  When  all  was  in  readiness  for  the  holy  cer- 
emony to  commence,  and  the  clergyman  just  going  to 
open  his  book,  a  strange  gentleman,  richly  dressed,  no 
other,  indeed,  than  the  horseman  who  had  been  before 
noticed  by  the  crowd,  rushed  into  the  church,  calling  out 
that  they  should  stop  the  marriage.  All  were  astonished 
at  this  interruption,  particularly  the  couple  about  to  be 
united,  each  of  whom  the  stranger  immediately  ad- 
dressed apart.  During  this  parley  the  bystanders  were 
more  aiid  more  surprised,  especially  when  they  saw  Sir 


14  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

Edward  standing  almost  speechless,  and  his  bride  crying 
and  fainting  away  in  the  stranger's  arms.  But  this 
seeming  grief  was  soon  over  and  was  presently  converted 
into  a  flood  of  joy.  This  gentleman,  so  elegantly 
dressed,  proved  to  be  no  other  than  Margery's  brother, 
our  former  acquaintance,  little  Tommy,  now  Mr.  Mean- 


well,  just  returned  with  great  honor  and  profit  from  a 
distant  foreign  country.  As  soon  as  the  news  reached 
him  that  his  sister  was  going  to  be  married  he  resolved 
to  take  horse  from  London,  where  he  then  was,  and  try 
to  reach  the  spot  in  time  to  find  out  whether  it  was  a 
suitable  match  for  one  so  dear  to  him  as  Margery  was, 
and  to  whom  he  was  now  able  to  give  a  fortune  if  she 
needed  it.  All  was  soon  explained,  and  the  loving  couple 
then  returned  to  the  altar  and  were  married,  to  the  sat- 
isfaction of  all  present. 
After  her  happy  marriage  Lady  Lovell  continued  to 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  15 

practice  all  kinds  of  good.  She  was  not  content  in  giv- 
ing largely  in  the  way  of  charity,  but  she  constantly  went 
about  visiting  the  poor,  cheering  them  up  and  helping 
them  in  their  troubles,  and  comforting  them  in  sickness. 
She  took  great  pains  in  increasing  and  improving  the 
school  of  which  she  had  been  the  mistress,  and  placed 
there  a  poor  but  worthy  scholar  and  his  wife  to  preside 
over  it.  She  lived  happily  with  Sir  Edward  for  many 
years;  and  as  her  life  had  been  regarded  as  the  greatest 
blessing,  so  her  death  was  looked  upon  as  the  greatest 
calamity  that  had  befallen  the  neighborhood  for  many 
years. 


PATTY  AND  HER  PITCHER; 

OB,  KINDNESS  OF  HEAKT. 

PATTY  was  the  most  charming  little  girl  in  her  native 
village,  and  so  all  the  neighbors  said.  Such  a  character 
as  this  it  is  very  difficult  to  obtain;  but  when  childien  do 
get  it  you  may  be  sure  they  deserve  it.  Patty  deserved 
it,  for  she  loved  everybody  and  everything;  and  in  re- 
turn she  was  rewarded  by  the  love  of  all  who  knew  her. 
The  pigeons  flew  down  from  their  little  house  to  coo 
round  her;  the  fowls  fed  from  her  hand;  the  cat  rolled 
over  her  feet  and  purred  out  her  fondness;  and  even  the 
steady  old  dog  Bluff  amused  himself  with  the  strangest 
antics  and  gambols  whenever  he  could  gain  her  atten- 
tion. They  all  knew  very  well  how  kind  and  good  she 
was,  although  they  could  not  say  so. 

She  was  also  very  industrious;  for  when  quite  a  child 
she  used'to  bustle  about  and  do  little  things  in  the  hand- 
iest manner;  and  as  for  sewing,  she  was  the  pattern  child 
at  the  dame's  school,  where  her  sampler  was  hung  up  in 
state,  that  the  other  children  should  see  what  might  be 
done  by  industry  and  care. 

When  she  went  to  the  spring  that  was  near,  to  dip  her 
pitcher  into  its  bright  bubbling  water,  she  would  warble 
out  her  sweet  little  ballads  with  a  voice  that  took  the  at- 
tention of  all  who  heard,  for  her  heart  was  full  of  joy 
and  she  could  not  restrain  her  gladness.  On  one  of  her 


16  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

journeys  to  the  spring  happened  the  great  event  of  her 
life,  which  I  now  sit  down  to  write.  It  will  show  very 
clearly  that  we  should  always  be  ready  to  do  a  kind  ac- 
tion to  any  one,  for  love  and  kindness  shown  to  others 
always  return  tenfold  to  the  giver,  as  it  did  to  her. 
Well,  then,  to  begin  the  story,  as  I  have  now  told  you 


all  about  Patty  and  her  goodness.  Patty  had  filled  her 
pitcher  at  the  spring  and  was  carrying  it  home  (and  it 
was  no  trifle  to  carry  when  full),  when,  almost  in  sight 
of  her  cottage,  she  saw  a  poor  old  woman  sitting  upon 
the  trunk  of  a  fallen  tree,  as  if  fatigued  after  a  long  jour- 
ney. Her  face  was  as  brown  as  a  nut  and  covered  with 
wrinkles,  and  her  eyes  were  dull  and  sunken.  On  her 
back  was  tied  a  bundle,  heavy  enough  for  a  strong  man 
to  carry.  She  turned  her  eyes  upon  Patty  as  she  ap- 
proached, and  cast  eager  looks  upon  the  sparkling  water 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  17 

in  the  pitcher,  a  draught  from  which  she  longed  to  ask 
for;  and  trusting  in  the  good-natured  rosy  face  of  Patty, 
she  at  last  ventured  to  do  so. 

"Dear  little  child/'  said  she  in  a  feeble  voice,  "let 
me  cool  my  parched  lips  with  a  drink  from  your  pitcher, 
for  I  am  very  old,  and  faint,  and  weary." 


"To  be  sure,  mother,  and  welcome,"  said  Patty,  lifting 
it  up  so  that  the  old  woman  might  readily  quench  her 
thirst. 

Long  and  eagerly  did  the  poor  creature  drink:  so  long, 
indeed,  that  Patty  was  really  quite  surprised. 

"Thank  you,  my  darling.  Heaven  will  reward  you  for 
your  kindness  to  the  poor  and  aged,"  said  the  old 
woman. 

"Oh!  you're  quite  welcome,  mother,"  replied  Patty, 
and  again  went  on  her  way;  but  she  had  not  proceeded 
far  before  she  met  a  large  dog,  who  seemed  to  be  bound 


18  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

on  a  long  journey,  for  he  was  covered  with  dust,  his  eyes 
were  red,  and  his  parched  tongue  was  hanging  out  of  his 
mouth,  to  catch  the  cool  air.  "Poor  fellow!"  said  Patty. 

The  dog  turned  round  at  her  kind  voice,  and  stopped 
to  look  at  her;  she  held  out  her  hand,  and  he  came  near 
her;  she  put  down  her  pitcher  to  caress  him,  and  then 
he  tried  to  make  his  way  to  what  his  instinct  told  him 
was  water;  she  knew  what  the  poor  dog  wanted,  and 
held  the  pitcher  so  that  he  could  drink.  He  lapped  and 
lapped  until  she  really  began  to  think  that  he  would 
never  leave  off.  At  last  he  looked  up  to  her  face  and 
licked  her  hand  in  gratitude;  then,  after  two  or  three 
bounds,  to  show  her  how  refreshed  he  was,  he  trotted  on 
his  way. 

Soon  after,  she  met  a  group  of  little  children  who  had 
been  gathering  flowers  and  daisies,  and  making  posies 
with  them;  They  had  been  scampering  about  the  fields, 
and  were  tired  and  thirsty.  So  Patty  told  them  to  nut 
their  little  hands  together  and  make  cups  of  them;  then 
she  filled  these  "handy  cups,"  and  made  them  drink. 

"Will  you  please  take  this  nosegay?"  they  said,  and 
offered  her  the  prettiest  one  they  had. 

"Let  me  put  it  in  your  bosom  myself,"  said  the  small- 
est one  of  the  group.  Patty  stooped  down  while  the 
grateful  child  fastened  it  with  a  pin  to  her  frock.  Each 
of  them  received  a  kiss,  and  then  all  ran  off  to  pluck 
more  pretty  flowers. 

Patty  looked  into  her  pitcher,  and  found  that  it  was 
more  than  half-empty,  so  that  she  must  have  all  her 
journey  over  again,  for  it  was  of  no  use  going  home  with 
such  a  drop  as  that.  But  then  she  saw  some  harebells 
growing  by  the  dusty  roadside,  drooping  for  want  of 
water,  so  she  gave  them  the  benefit  of  what  was  left  in 
her  pitcher,  and  the  flowers  seemed  to  love  her  for  her 
kindness. 

Back  she  went,  without  one  thought  about  her 
trouble,  and  soon  gained  the  margin  of  the  spring.  She 
was  just  about  to  stoop  and  dip  her  pitcher  into  its 
transparent  depth,  when  she  thought  she  saw  something 
glistening  beneath,  which  caused  her  to  withdraw  her 
hand.  She  watched  and  watched,  until  she  saw  a  sweet 
little  face  looking  up  to  her;  and  presently  there  stood 
before  her  one  of  the  most  beautiful  of  fairies.  She 


Patty  held  the  pitcher  so  that  the  clog  could  drink.— Page  18. 

Old,  Old  Fairy  Tales. 


•    -  ;    • 
•    •     •  • 


'  •  ,•  .     ,  •  •  •    ' ' ', 

:;    :  ;.  :  -.; 

.     -  -  .    .  .        .-     , 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  19 

stood  upon  the  water  with  the  same  ease  as  Patty  stood 
on  the  land,  and  she  was  not  really  higher  than  the 
pitcher. 

"So,  Patty,"  said  she — you  see,  she  knew  Patty — "so 
you  have  come  back  again,  my  dear!" 

"Yes,  madam,"  replied  Patty,  rather  alarmed;  "yes, 
madam,  because  I " 

"I  know  all  about  it,"  said  the  fairy,  stopping  her; 
"and  because  I  know,  is  the  reason  that  you  see  me;  for  I 
am  a  friend  only  to  the  good  and  kind;  and  I  come  now 
to  make  you  a  very  useful  present." 

"A  present!"  said  Patty,  surprised  and  pleased. 

"Yes!  and  such  a  one  as  will  be  a  lasting  reward  for 
your  goodness  of  heart  toward  others,  and  your  little 
care  about  yourself.  You  blush,  because  you  do  not  re- 
member the  many  kind  things  that  you  have  done,  and  I 
am  the  more  pleased  to  see  that  you  think  I  am  ^giving 
you  too  much  praise.  You  forget  all  those  acts  of  kind- 
ness which  are  the  ornament  of  your  life,  and  this  assures 
me  of  the  pureness  of  your  motives;  for  it  is  our  duty  to 
forget  the  good  we  do  to  others,  and  to  remember  only 
what  they  do  for  us.  You  ha#e  always  done  so,  my  dear 
little  Patty.  To  reward  you  I  will  place  a  spell  upon 
your  pitcher,  which,  for  the  future,  shall  always  be  full 
of  water,  or  of  milk,  as  you  may  wish  it.  It  shall  also 
.be  able  to  walk  and  to  speak  whenever  you  may  require 
it,  and  shall  always  be  your  firm  friend  in  trouble.  Trust 
to  it,  and  never  give  way  to  despair.  If,  by  any  mishap, 
it  should  be  parted  from  you,  it  will  easily,  by  its  magic 
power,  be  able  to  find  you,  and  be  by  your  side  as  your  ad- 
viser and  protector.  Do  not  be  afraid  to  accept  this  at 
my  hands,  for  I  am  one  of  the  fairies  who  oppose  all  that 
is  evil.  You,  by  your  goodness,  have  acquired  the 
power  of  seeing  me  and  hearing  me  speak.  Whenever 
mortals  are  good  enough,  this  power  is  given  to  them, 
and  we  appear  and  present  them  with  some  reward  that 
only  the  virtuous  deserve  on  this  earth.  So  put  your 
pitcher  down  by  your  side,  Patty."  Patty  did  as  she 
was  desired.  "Now  look  into  it." 

Patty  did  so,  and,  to  her  astonishment,  beheld  the 
bright  water  gradually  rising  until  the  pitcher  was  full  to 
the  brim.  When  she  saw  it  was  full  she  was  going  to 
raise  it,  but  found  it  too  heavy  for  her  strength. 


20  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

"You  need  not  trouble  yourself  to  carry  it/'  said  the 
fairy,  smiling;  "it  will  itself  save  you  all  further  trouble 
of  that  kind." 

With  that  she  touched  it  with  her  wand,  and  the 
pitcher  raised  itself  upon  two  very  well-shaped  legs, 
made  out  of  the  same  stone  as  the  brown  pitcher  itself. 
As  soon  as  it  was  firm  on  its  feet  it  made  a  very  polite 
bow  to  Patty  as  its  future  mistress. 

"Now,  Patty,"  said  the  fairy,  "follow  your  pitcher, 
and  you  cannot  do  wrong." 

As  she  finished  speaking  she  broke  into  thousands  of 
sparkling  drops,  and  mixed  with  the  bubbling  stream, 
which  seemed  to  bear  her  away. 

Patty  rubbed  her  eyes,  in  hopes  that  she  should  wake 
from  what  really  appeared  a  dream.  She  coughed 
aloud,  then  pinched  herself,  then  ran  up  and  down  the 
lane,  and  at  last  she  was  convinced  she  was  awake.  But 
more  than  all,  there  stood  the  brown  pitcher  on  his  natty 
brown  legs,  waiting  for  orders  what  to  do. 

"Quite  ready  to  start,  mistress,"  said  a  voice  from  the 
pitcher.  Patty  screwed  up  her  courage,  and  said, 
"Come  on,  then,  pitcher,"  and  set  the  example  by  start- 
ing off  with  a  run. 

And  did  not  the  pitcher  follow  her  in  good  earnest? 

Indeed,  it  ran  so  fast  that  it  soon  overtook  her,  and  ran 

before  her  all  the  way  home.     But  the  most  wonderful 

thing  was,  although  it  bounded  along  with  long  strides 

and  high  jumps  over  the  roughest  places  in  the  lanes,  it 

did  not  spill  one  single  drop  of  water.     This  puzzled 

xPatty,  who,  with  her  utmost  care,  could  never  avoid  wet- 

'ting  her  frock  whenever  she  had  tried  to  run  with  the 

pitcher  even  half-full. 

"What  will  the  people  think  when  we  get  into  the  vil- 
lage?" thought  Patty,  as  she  looked  at  her  strange  com- 
panion. "I'm  sure  they  will  be  frightened;  and  what 
will  my  mother  and  father  say  when  they  see  wJiat  I  have 
brought  home?" 

"Do  not  trouble  yourself  about  that,"  said  the  pitcher, 
who  seemed  to  hear  her  thoughts;  "your  parents  will 
soon  get  accustomed  to  me,  and  be  rather  pleased  when 
they  discover  my  handiness;  for  you  have  yet  to  find 
out  all  the  good  things  I  can  do." 

As  he  was  speaking  they  came  to  a  very  high  and 
difficult  stile. 


OLD,  OLD  VAIRY  TALES.  21 

"Shall  I  help  you  over?"  said  Patty,  thinking  of  his 
short  legs. 

"Oh,  dear,  no!"  said  the  pitcher;  "see  how  little  I 
require  it." 

So  saying,  he  skipped  over  the  stile  in  the  most  grace- 
ful manner.  As  he  did  so  a  dog  that  was  passing 
popped  his  tail  between  his  legs,  and  after  two  or  three 
very  weak  barks,  ran  away  in  a  dreadful  fright.  A  man, 
at  the  same  time,  was  approaching  with  a  slow  and 
pompous  walk — for  he  was  the  squire  of  the  village — 
who,  upon  perceiving  the  strange  pitcher  clear  the  stile 
in  that  miraculous  manner,  was  overcome  with  wonder; 
but  he  soon  moved  pretty  quickly  when  he  saw  the  little 
legs  speeding  along  toward  him.  He  uttered  one  loud 
cry  and  fled.  His  hat  flew  one  way,  his  gold-headed 
cane  another,  and  his  cloak  flew  up  into  the  air  like 
wings.  He  had  not  proceeded  far  before  his  legs  failed 
him,  and  he  lay  kicking  in  a  furze-bush,  roaring  for  help. 
Patty  could  not  help  laughing,  but  the  pitcher,  trotting 
on  with  the  greatest  unconcern,  soon  reached  the  cottage 
door,  where  he  rather  astonished  Patty's  poor  parents. 
When  he  entered  he  sat  himself  quietly  down  in  the 
corner  where  he  had  been  always  kept,  so  that  nobody 
could  see  his  legs.  The  neighbors,  therefore,  who  had 
been  alarmed  by  the  squire's  account  of  his  fright,  and 
only  saw  a  pitcher  like  every  one  had  at  home,  of  course 
thought  the  old  squire  a  little  bit  out  of  his  mind. 

Patty  was  awakened  next  morning  by  hearing  a  noise 
below,  as  if  some  one  were  busy  with  the  furniture.  She 
heard  the  chairs  pushed  about,  and  presently  the  handle 
of  a  pail  clinked  down  as  plain  as  plain  could  be.  So  she 
put  on  part  of  her  clothes  and  crept  down.  The  noise 
still  continuing,  she  peeped  through  the  red  curtains 
that  were  hung  across  the  room  to  keep  the  wind  away 
from  their  backs  when  they  sat  by  the  fireside;  and 
there  she  saw,  not  any  thieves,  but  the  pitcher;  and 
what  do  you  think  it  was  doing?  Why,  mopping  the  red 
tiles  of  the  floor,  and  very  well  did  he  handle  the  mop. 
And  there  was  the  paiFfull  of  water  by  his  side,  as  if  he 
had  been  a  servant-of-all-work  all  his  life;  and  more  won- 
derful still,  there  was  the  fire  burning!  We  can  fancy  a 
pitcher  of  water  washing  the  floor,  but  cannot  imagine  its 
doing  anything  with  a  fire  except  putting  it  out.  But 


22  OLD,  OLD  FAIR7  TALES. 

no!  there  had  he  lighted  the  fire  and  put  the  kettle  on, 
which  was  just  singing  a  most  delightful  song  about  the 
breakfast  being  nearly  ready. 

""Good-morning,  my  good  mistress,"  said  the  pitcher, 
in  no  way  put  out.  "You  need  not  trouble  yourself  to  do 


anything  but  grow  and  improve  yourself;  for  from  hence- 
forth you  will  have  very  little  labor  to  do,  as  I  am  your 
very  humble  servant." 

Was  not  Patty  pleased!  for  she  was  growing  a  tall  girl, 
and  felt  a  great  desire  to  improve  herself  with  her  books, 
which  she  had  had  very  little  time  to  do,  as  she  had  been 
so  much  occupied  with  her  household  duties. 

When  Patty  was  left  alone  in  the  evening  with  the 
pitcher  in  the  corner,  she  said  how  much  she  was  obliged 
to  him,  and  how  much  she  wished  to  learn,  but  wanted 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  23 

to  know  what  she  was  to  do  for  books,  as  she  had  read 
the  few  she  possessed  a  hundred  times. 

"Oh!  that's  very  soon  remedied,"  said  the  pitcher, 
"for  you  have  only  to  wish,  and  I  will  yield  as  much  milk 
as  you  please.  Then  you  can  make  butter  and  cheese, 
and  go  and  sell  it  at  the  market  town,  and  buy  as  many 


books  as  you  like,  and  have  plenty  of  money  to  spare  for 
other  purposes." 

No  sooner  said  than  done.  Patty  set  out  all  the  pans 
she  had  and  could  borrow  from  her  kind  neighbors;  and, 
as  fast  as  they  came,  the  pitcher  ran  about  and  filled 
them;  so  that  she  soon  had  plenty  of  cream  for  her  but- 
ter and  cheese.  She  had  only  to  ask,  and  a  good  old 
neighbor  lent  her  a  churn,  which  the  pitcher  soon  found 
a  pair  of  arms  to  turn;  and  such  butter  was  produced  as 


24  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

had  not  been  seen  in  the  village  for  many  a  day.  Was 
not  Patty  pleased,  and  were  not  her  parents  delighted? 

The  same  old  farmer  lent  her  a  horse  and  panniers, 
and  early  in  the  morning  she  started  for  the  market 
town,  the  way  to  which  the  pitcher  pointed  out  to  her. 
He  did  not  go  with  her,  as  he  said  the  people  of  the 
town  were  not  used  to  see  brown  pitchers,  so  he  should 
stop  at  home  and  look  after  the  cheese.  Patty  proceeded 
on  her  way,  looking  as  happy  and  as  handsome  as  the 
best  farmer's  daughter  of  them  all.  So  everybody  in 
the  market  said,  where  she  sold  all  her  butter. 

So  went  on  Patty's  success  until  she  grew  into  a 
pretty,  neat  young  woman;  with  her  old  parents  living 
in  comfort  in  one  of  the  best  cottages  in  the  village; 
everybody  saying  that  she  deserved  her  good  fortune, 
and  not  one  single  soul  envying  her:  you  may  guess  she 
was  happy  indeed. 

One  evening  she  was  standing  in  the  garden,  feeding 
some  of  her  pigeons,  when  a  handsomely  dressed  stranger 
approached  the  gate,  who,  after  admiring  her  for  a  short 
time,  took  off  his  plumed  hat  in  the  most  graceful  man- 
ner, and  begged  her  to  inform  him  the  nearest  way  to 
the  next  town.  When  she  spoke  the  music  of  her  voice 
and  her  charming  modesty  seemed  to  increase  the  ad- 
miration of  the  stranger.  He  bowed,  and,  after  a  slight 
hesitation,  went  on  his  way. 

But  that  young  stranger  came  again  and  again,  al- 
though he  knew  his  way  very  well  to  and  from  the  neigh- 
boring city.  At  last  she  found  that  it  was  the  way  to 
her  heart  he  was  seeking;  for  he  told  her  parents  that  he 
was  rich,  and  wished  to  have  a  wife  whom  everybody 
spoke  well  of,  since  his  own  wealth  left  him  at  liberty  to 
choose  for  himself,  without  a  desire  for  any  more.  "The 
parents  smiled  as  they  looked  upon  the  handsome  suitor 
whom  they  did  not  think  one  bit  too  good  for  their  dear 
Patty;  and  so  in  the  course  of  a  short  time  they  were 
married. 

Great  joy  was  in  the  village  on  the  day  of  the  wed- 
ding. If  the  queen  had  visited  the  village  there  could 
not  have  been  more  gladness  of  heart.  All  left  off  work 
and  made  holiday. 

Groups  of  people  here  and  there  talked  of  the  kind 
actions  Patty  nad  done.  The  poor  women  spoke  of  the 


Early  in  the  morning  Patty  started  for  the  market  tovn,  tliL  p^ich.-i-  j 
out  the  way.— Page  24.  Old,  Old  Fairy  Tales. 


' 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  25 

clothes  she  had  made  for  them,  and  said,  "there  never 
was  such  a  good  creature  as  Patty."  Some  had  received 
nice  little  dishes  of  cookery  when  they  were  ill.  Many 
of  the  girls  had  been  taught  to  sew  and  make  garments; 
and  the  little  children  had  been  taught  to  read.  The 
church  was  filled  with  people  who  loved  her  and  wished 
to  take  one  last  fond  look  at  her  sweet  face.  Garlands 
of  flowers  were  hung  across  the  road  with  mottoes  such 
as  "Patty  the  Good,"  "God  bless  our  friend  Patty," 
"Kind  actions  never  die."  And  when  the  married  pair 
started  from  the  church  scores  of  old  shoes  were  flung 
after  them  for  good  luck,  with  such  shouts  and  huzzas 
that  the  village  never  heard  before. 

But  the  stranger  who  had  married  Patty  took  her 
home  to  a  noble  palace,  where  his  forefathers  had  reigned 
for  many  centuries  as  princes;  and  the  humble  little 
Patty  found  that  her  dear  husband  had  made  her  a 
princess,  and  surrounded  her  with  all  the  luxuries  and 
splendors  of  her  high  station. 

Did  Patty  forget  her  humble  home  and  her  old  friend 
the  pitcher?  No!  she  did  not:  the  pitcher  was  with  her, 
but  her  parents  wished  to  remain  in  their  peaceful  home, 
which  their  dear  child  had  made  so  happy  by  her  vir- 
tuous industry. 

In  the  splendid  state  in  which  Patty  now  lived  the 
pitcher  was  as  much  her  servant  and  benefactor  as  when 
he  first  assisted  her  in  the  humble  cottage.  When  the 
poor  came  to  the  palace  gates  he  stood  there  and  poured 
into  their  pitchers  nourishing  soup  to  support  them  and 
their  families;  and  they  did  not  forget  to  bless  the  good 
princess  for  her  kindly  thoughts  of  those  who  needed  her 
protection  and  charity  so  much;  and  so  the  pitcher,  al- 
though now  not  called  upon  to  work,  still  continued,  in 
the  name  of  his  mistress,  to  do  good  to  all  around. 

But  even  the  very  best  of  us  cannot  escape  from  envi- 
ous hearts  and  evil  tongues;  and  so  it  fell  out  to  Princess 
Patty:  for  we  love  to  call  her  Patty,  although  she  became 
a  princess.  Many  of  the  wicked  courtiers,  who  envied 
her  being  loved  by  the  people,  whispered  slanders  into 
the  ears  of  the  prince  her  husband,  who  at  last  was  weak 
enough  to  listen  to  them;  for  they  made  him  afraid  by 
telling  him  that  she  was  trying  to  bribe  the  people,  by 
her  charities,  to  rebel  against  the  rightful  prince,  and  to 


26  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

place  herself  on  the  throne  alone;  and  also  that  evil 
spirits  helped  her;  and  that  the  friendly  pitcher  was  one 
of  them. 

Alas  for  human  weakness!  The  prince,  at  last,  was 
convinced,  by  their  arguments,  of  her  guilt;  and,  al- 
though his  heart  ached,  commanded  her  to  be  put  into  a 
dungeon  in  the  very  depths  of  the  palace,  and  left  her 
there  to  mourn.  She  did  not  mourn  long,  for  as  night 
came  on  the  pitcher  opened  her  prison  doors  and  aided 
her  in  her  flight. 

"Come,"  said  he,  "return  to  your  peaceful  home,  and 
show  your  husband  that  it  is  his^heart,  and  not  his  king- 
dom, that  you  covet.  He  will  be  sorry  for  what  he  has 
done  when  he  finds  that  he  has  lost  you." 

She  followed  the  pitcher;  but  they  had  not  proceeded 
far  in  their  flight  when  Patty  saw  that  they  were  pursued 
by  a  party  of  soldiers:  she  screamed  with  alarm. 

"Be  not  alarmed,  dearest  mistress,"  said  the  pitcher; 
"I  will  stop  these  pursuers."  So  saying,  he  bent  over 
the  side  of  the  rock  and  poured  out  a  cataract  of  water 
into  the  valley  through  which  they  were  coming.  The 
waters  rolled  in  high  waves  and  swept  them  from  the 
path,  until  it  became  like  a  large,  deep  lake.  The  sol- 
diers swam  to  the  nearest  land,  glad  to  save  their  lives. 

That  night  she  slept  beneath  the  humble  roof  of  her 
parents — their  own  dear  Patty.  Early  in  the  morning 
she  was  in  her  own  beloved  garden  with  the  beautiful 
flowers,  and  she  tried  to  be  happy  and  forget  the  past, 
by  being  always  at  work  and  by  making  others  happy; 
but  her  thoughts  would  wander  to  the  home  of  her  hus- 
band, and  she  grieved  over  his  unkindness  to  her,  in  re- 
turn for  her  love  to  him;  and  sometimes,  in  the  midst  of 
her  tears,  she  would  hope  that  some  fortunate  accident 
might  remove  the  evil  thought  from  his  mind,  that  had 
caused  h^r  so  much  grief.  The  pitcher  was  always  by 
her  side,  and  gave  her  comfort  in  her  silent  sorrow. 

The  news  of  Patty's  return  to  her  home  soon  spread 
through  the  village,  and  all  came  to  see  once  more 
one  whom  they  had  learned  to  love  so  much.  She  told 
them  nothing  of  her  husband's  cruel  conduct,  for  she 
loved  him  too  much  to  let  them  think  he  was  unkind. 

"Our  friend  Patty,"  they  said,  "has  come  to  visit  her 
parents;  we  must  make  her  a  present." 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  2? 

Many  a  talk  they  had  about  what  the  present  should 
be.  At  last  they  settled  it,  and  all  the  girls  helped  to 
make  a  beautiful  piece  of  worsted  work,  wrought  with 
many  bright  colors,  and  spread  on  a  handsome  frame. 
The  motto  worked  in  it  was  "KIND  ACTIONS  TO  OTHERS 

BRING   HAPPINESS  TO   OURSELVES." 

Little  did  they  think  how  much  grief  was  then  in 
Patty's  heart.  But  still  the  motto  was  true,  as  we  shall 
lee  before  we  finish  the  story. 

Days  and  weeks  rolled  on,  but  no  news  reached  her 
from  her  husband.  Had  he  quite  left  her?  or  did  he  be- 
lieve that  she  had  been  swept  away  by  the  torrent  which 
had  so  nearly  drowned  his  soldiers?  She  hoped  that  it 
was  so,  for  then  he  might  be  mourning  her  as  dead;  for 
surely  he  must  have  found,  long  ere  this,  that  the 
wicked  courtiers  had  spoken  falsely. 

One  fine  morning  she  had  risen  earlier  than  usual,  for 
her  mind  was  restless,  and  she  could  not  sleep.  She 
walked  into  the  pure  air,  scented  with  the  perfume  of 
flowers,  and  her  fevered  brow  was  refreshed  with  the 
cool  breeze.  Looking  round,  she  beheld  her  friend  the 
pitcher  trimming  the  flowers  like  an  old  gardener  who 
knew  his  business. 

"Good-morning,  fair  mistress  mine,"  said  he.     "You 
are  up  betimes,  for  the  sun  has  hardly  climbed  the  dis- 
tant mountains  to  peep  into  our  valley;  but  I  am  glad  to 
see  you  so  early  afoot,  as  you  perceive  that  I  am  taking 
extra  care  with  the  garden,  for  I  expect  visitors  to-day." 
"Visitors?"  exclaimed  Patty,  with  an  inquiring  look. 
"Yes,  visitors,"  said  the  pitcher,  from  whose  mouth 
issued  a  low  chuckling  laugh.     "lean  hear  distinctly  a 
footstep  in  the  distance;  it  comes  this  way.     Listen!  it  is 
now  near  enough  for  mortal  ears  to  hear." 

And  so  it  was;  nearer  and  nearer  it  came.  Presently 
the  figure  of  a  palmer  appeared  at  the  wicket  gate.  He 
entered;  but  when  he  beheld  before  him  the  figure  of  his 
long-lost  Patty  he  suddenly  stopped,  and  stood  quite 
still,  like  a  statue  of  surprise.  It  was  indeed  her  hus- 
band the  prince! 

"That  is  the  visitor  I  expected,"  said  the  pitcher;  "he 
has  believed  you  dead,  and  has  wandered  to  many  places 
to  assuage  his  grief.  At  last  he  has  dared  to  venture  to 
this  humble  cottage,  that  he  might  again  see  the  spot 


28  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

where  he  first  had  the  good  fortune  to  meet  yon.  He 
hoped  to  console  his  unhappy  mind,  and  to  atone  for  his 
crime,  by  coming  where  everything  would  remind  him 
of  you  and  of  your  virtues  and  of  the  fault  he  has  com- 
mitted in  believing  that  you  were  trying  to  get  his  riches 
and  his  kingdom,  when  he  himself  was  all  your  world,  all 
your  riches,  all  your  enjoyment.  Your  being  alive  is 
the  reward  for  his  sincere  repentance.  He  finds  you  in 
your  first  humble  sphere,  grieving  for  nothing  but  the 
loss  of  him,  hoping  for  nothing  but  the  return  of  his 
love." 

The  prince  rushed  forward  with  a  cry  of  delight,  and 
knelt  at  Patty's  feet.  The  pitcher,  like  a  discreet 
friend,  placed  her  hand  in  his,  and  then  went  on  with 
his  gardening,  leaving  the  long-separated  couple  to 
themselves,  who  quickly  effected  a  reconciliation  with 
each  other. 

Patty's  parents  rejoiced  in  her  newly-found  happiness, 
yet  felt  a  pang  of  regret  when,  some  days  after  the 
happy  meeting,  the  prince  proposed  that  they  should  re- 
turn to  his  kingdom,  and  that  he  would  send  forward  a 
message  that  his  wife  should  make  her  entry  in  triumph. 

The  pitcher  walked  out  of  the  cottage  and  joined  the 
group. 

"Prince,"  said  he,  "spare  yourself  the  trouble.  I  am 
here  to  give  my  last  service  to  my  mistress.  I  have  re- 
warded her  for  the  greatest  of  virtues,  self-denial  and 
love  for  her  fellow-creatures,  and  the  fairy  who  animated 
me  now  recalls  me  to  her  water  palace:  behold!" 

As  he  ceased  speaking  jets  of  sparkling  water  rose 
high  into  the  air  from  his  mouth,  until  a  broad  lake 
spread  over  the  valley,  upon  which  was  borne  a  gilded 
barge,  rowed  by  stout  boatmen  in  the  prince's  livery.  It 
glided  to  their  feet,  and  they  all  stepped  in.  The  serv- 
ants pulled  with  a  good  will  into  the  midst  of  the 
stream.  Still  the  fountain  plaved  from  the  pitcher's 
mouth  until  the  stream  was  swollen  into  a  mighty  river, 
down  which  they  Coated  until  they  came  in  sight  of  their 
own  castle,  standing  high  up  on  the  rocks  on  the  border 
of  the  current.  Flags  floated  from  the  turrets  and 
booming  cannon  sent  forth  their  noisy  welcome.  Crowds 
of  rejoicing  vassals  stood  to  receive  their  much-loved 
princess,  whose  happy  tears  spoke  for  her  to  the  hearts 


Ihe  Prince  rushed  forward  with  a  cry  of  delight,  and  knelt  nt  PaHy's  foH 
Page  28. 


•   • 

«• 

• 


• 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  29 

that  knew  so  well  how  good  she  was.  The  prince  and 
princess  lived  happily  many  years  over  a  thriving  and 
contented  people,  whose  love  and  loyalty  were  the 
strongest  bulwarks  of  their  throne.  The  benevolence  of 
the  princess,  and  her  charming  courtesy  and  gentleness, 
gained  her  the  title  of  "The  Gentle  Princess/'  and  she 
was  pointed  out  as  a  model  for  the  imitation  of  all  the 
young  princesses  of  the  neighboring  countries. 

The  happy  pair  were  blessed  with  a  numerous  and 
beautiful  family  of  sons  and  daughters,  to  whom  their 
mother  would  often  relate  the  story  of  her  early  life;  for 
she  was  not  ashamed  to  confess  her  former  lowly  station 
and  humble  parentage;  and  much  wonder  and  delight 
was  always  expressed  by  the  younger  children  at  her  ac- 
count of  the  magic  pitcher,  and  many  were  the  wishes 
that  it  would  again  make  its  appearance;  but  these 
wishes  were  not  to  be  gratified.  The  magic  pitcher  was 
seen  no  more;  but  its  history  teaches  all  who  read  it  that 

KINDNESS  TO  OTHEKS  BRINGS  HAPPINESS  TO 
OUESELVES. 


BLANCHE   AND  ROSALAND. 

IK  a  pleasant  village  some  miles  from  the  metropolis, 
there  lived  a  very  good  sort  of  woman,  who  was  much 
beloved  by  all  her  neighbors,  because  she  was  always 
ready  to  assist  every  one  who  was  in  need.  She  had  re- 
ceived in  her  youth  a  better  education  than  the  inhabit- 
ants of  the  little  village  in  which  she  dwelt,  and  for  this 
reason  the  poor  people  looked  up  to  her  with  a  degree  of 
respect. 

She  was  the  widow  of  a  very  good  man,  who,  when  he 
died,  left  her  with  two  children.  They  were  very  pretty 
girls;  the  eldest,  on  account  of  the  fairness  of  her  com- 
plexion, was  named  Blanche,  and  the  other  Rosalind, 
because  her  cheeks  were  like  roses,  and  her  lips  like  coral. 

One  day,  while  Goody  Hearty  sat  spinning  at  the  door, 
she  saw  a  poor  old  woman  going  by,  leaning  on  a  stick, 
who  had  much  ado  to  hobble  along,  "You  seem,  very 


30 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRT  TALES. 


much  tired,  dame/'  said  she  to  the  old  woman;  "sit 
down  here,  and  rest  yourself  a  little;"  at  the  same  time 
she  bid  her  daughters  fetch  a  chair;  they  both  went,  but 
Eosalind  ran  fastest,  and  brought  one.  "Will  you  please 
to  drink?"  said  Goody  Hearty. 

"Thank  you,"  answered  the  old  woman,  "I  don't  care 
if  I  do,  and  methinks  if  you  had  anything  nice  that  I 
liked,  I  could  eat  a  bit." 

"You  are  welcome  to  the  best  I  have  in  my  house,"  said 
Goody  Hearty,  "but  as  I  am  poor,  it  is  homely  fare." 


She  then  ordered  her  daughters  to  spread  a  clean  cloth 
on  the  table,  while  she  went  to  the  cupboard,  from 
whence  she  took  some  brown  bread  and  cheese,  to  which 
she  added  a  mug  of  cider.  As  soon  as  the  old  woman 
was  seated  at  the  table,  Goody  Hearty  desired  her  eldest 
daughter  to  go  and  gather  some  plums  off  her  own  plum- 
tree,  which  she  had  planted  herself,  and  took  great  de- 
light in.  Blanche,  instead  of  obeying  her  mother  read- 
ily, grumbled  and  muttered  as  she  went.  "Surely,"  said 
she  to  herself,  "I  did  not  take  all  this  care  and  pains 
with  my  plum-tree  for  that  old  creature."  However, 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  31 

she  durst  not  refuse  gathering  a  few  plums,  but  she  gave 
them  with  a  very  ill-will,  and  very  ungraciously. 

"As  for  you,  Rosalind,"  said  her  mother,  "you  have  no 
fruit  to  offer  this  good  dame,  for  your  grapes  are  not  ripe. " 

"That's  true,"  replied   Eosalind,  "but  my  hen  has 


just  laid,  for  I  hear  her  cackle,  and  if  the  lady  likes  a 
new-laid  egg,  'tis  very  much  at  her  service;"  and  with- 
out staying  for  an  answer  she  ran  to  the  hen-roost,  and 
brought  the  egg;  but  just  as  she  was  presenting  it  to  the 
old  woman  she  turned  into  a  fine  beautiful  lady! 
"Good  woman/'  said  'she  to  Goody  Hearty,  "I  have 


32  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

long  seen  your  industry,  perseverance,  and  pious  resigna- 
tion, and  I  will  reward  your  daughters  according  to  their 
merits;  the  eldest  shall  be  a  great  queen,  the  other  shall 
have  a  country  farm;"  with  this  she  struck  the  house 
with  her  stick,  which  immediately  disappeared,  and  in  its 
room  up  came  a  pretty  little  snug  farm.  "This,  Eosa- 
lind,"  said  she,  "is  your  lot;  I  know  I  have  given  each 
of  you  what  you  like  best." 

Having  said  this,  the  fairy  went  away,  leaving  both 
mother  and  daughters  greatly  astonished.  They  went 
into  the  farmhouse,  and  were  quite  charmed  with  the 
neatness  of  the  furniture;  the  chairs  were  only  wood, 
but  so  bright  you  might  see  your  face  in  them.  The 
beds  were  of  linen  cloth,  as  white  as  snow.  There  were 
forty  sheep  in  the  sheep-pen;  four  oxen,  and  four  cows, 
in  their  stalls;  and  in  the  yard  all  sorts  of  poultry,  hens, 
ducks,  pigeons,  etc.  There  was  also  a  pretty  garden, 
well  stocked  with  flowers,  fruit  and  vegetables.  Blanche 
saw  the  fairy's  gift  to  her  sister  without  being  jealous, 
and  was  wholly  taken  up  with  the  thoughts  of  being  a 
queen;  when  all  of  a  sudden  she  heard  some  hunters 
riding  by,  and  going  to  the  gate  to  see  them,  she  ap- 
peared so  charming  in  the  king's  eyes,  who  was  there, 
that  he  resolved  to  marry  her. 

When  Blanche  was  a  queen  she  said  to  her  sister 
Eosalind,  "I  do  not  care  you  should  be  a  farmer;  come 
with  me,  sister,  and  I  will  match  you  to  some  great 
lord." 

"ram  very  much  obliged  to  you,  sister,"  replied 
•Roaslind;  "but  I  am  used  to  a  country  life,  and  I  pre- 
fer to  stay  where  I  am." 

Queen  Blanche  arrived  at  her  palace,  and  was  so  de- 
lighted with  her  new  dignity  that  she  could  not  sleep  for 
several  nights.  The  first  three  months  her  thoughts 
were  wholly  engrossed  by  dress,  balls,  and  plays,  so  that 
she  thought  of  nothing  else.  She  was  soon  accustomed 
to  all  this,  and  nothing  now  diverted  her;  on  the  con- 
trary she  found  it  a  great  dea'l  of  trouble. 

The  ladies  of  the  court  were  all  very  respectful  in  her 
presence;  but  she  knew  very  well  that  they  did  not  love 
her,  and  when  out  of  her  sight  would  often  say  to  one 
another,  "See  what  airs  this  little  country  girl  gives  her- 
self. His  majesty  must  have  a  very  mean  fancy  to 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  33 

choice  of  such  a  consort."  These  discourses  soon 
reached  the  king's  ears,  and  made  him  reflect  on  what  he 
had  done;  he  began  to  think  he  was  wrong,  and  repented 
his  marriage.  The  courtiers  saw  this,  and  accordingly 
paid  little  or  no  respect  to  Blanche.  She  was  very  un- 
happy, for  she  had  not  a  single  friend  to  whom  she  could 
declare  her  griefs;  she  saw  it  was  the  fashion  at  court  to 
betray  the  dearest  friend  for  interest,  to  caress  and  smile 
upon  those  they  most  hated,  and  to  lie  every  instant;  she 
was  obliged  to  be  always  serious,  because  they  told  her  a 
queen  ought  to  look  grave  and  majestic.  She  had  sev- 
eral children,  and  all  the  time  there  was  a  physician  to 
inspect  whatever  she  ate  or  drank,  and  to  order  every- 
thing she  liked  off  the  table;  not  a  grain  of  salt  was 
allowed  to  be  put  in  her  soup,  nor  was  she  permitted  to 
take  a  walk,  though  she  wished  ever  so  much  to  do  so. 
Governesses  were  appointed  to  her  children,  who  brought 
them  up  contrary  to  her  wishes;  yet  she  had  not  the 
liberty  to  find  fault.  Poor  Queen  Blanche  was  dying 
with  grief,  and  grew  so  thin  that  it  was  sad  to  see  her. 
She  had  not  seen  her  sister  for  three  years,  because  she 
imagined  it  would  disgrace  a  person  of  her  rank  and  dig- 
nity to  pay  a  visit  to  a  farmer's  wife.  Her  extreme  mel- 
ancholy made  her  very  ill,  and  her  physicians  ordered 
change  of  air."  She  therefore  resolved  to  spend  a  few 
days  in  the  country,  to  divert  her  uneasiness  and  im- 
prove her  health. 

Accordingly,  she  asked  the  king  for  leave  to  go,  and 
he  very  readily  granted  it,  because  he  thought  he  should 
be  rid  of  her  for  some  time.  She  set  out,  and  soon  ar- 
rived at  the  village.  As  she  drew  near  Rosalind's  house 
she  beheld,  at  a  little  distance  from  the  door,  a  company 
of  shepherds  and  shepherdesses,  who  were  dancing  and 
making  merry.  "Alas!"  said  the  queen,  sighing,  "there 
once  was  a  time  when  I  used  to  divert  myself  like  those 
"poor  people,  and  no  one  found  fault  with  me."  The 
moment  Rosalind  perceived  her  sister  she  ran  to  em- 
brace her.  The  queen  ordered  her  carriage  to  stop, 
and  alighting,  rushed  into  her  sister's  arms;  but  Rosa- 
lind was  grown  so  plump,  and  had  such  an  air  of  con- 
tent, that  the  queen,  as  she  looked  on  her,  could  not  for- 
bear bursting  into  tears. 

Rosalind  was  married  to  a  farmer's  son,  who  had  no 


34  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

fortune  of  his  own;  but  then  he  ever  remembered  that  he 
was  indebted  to  his  wife  for  everything  he  had,  and  he 
strove  to  show  his  gratitude  by  his  obliging  behavior. 
Rosalind  had  not  many  servants,  but  those  she  had  loved 
her  as  though  she  had  been  their  mother,  because  she 
used  them  kindly;  she  was  beloved  by  all  her  neighbors, 
and  they  all  endeavored  to  show  it.  She  neither  had  nor 
wanted  much  money;  corn,  wine,  and  oil  were  the 
growth  of  her  farm;  her  cows  supplied  her  with  milk, 
butter  and  cheese.  The  wool  of  her  sheep  was  spun  to 
clothe  herself,  her  husband,  and  her  two  children. 
They  enjoyed  perfect  health,  and  when  the  work  of  the 
day  was  over  they  spent  the  evening  in  all  sorts  of  pas- 
times. 

"Alas!"  oried  the  queen,  "the  fairy  made  me  a  sad 
present  in  giving  me  a  crown.  Content  is  not  found  in 
magnificent  palaces,  but  in  an  innocent  country  life." 

Scarce  had  she  done  speaking  before  the  fairy  ap- 
peared. 

"In  making  you  a  queen,"  said  the  fairy,  "I  did  not 
intend  to  reward,  but  punish  you  for  giving  me  your 
plums  with  an  ill-will.  To  be  contented  and  happy,  you 
must,  like  your  sister,  possess  only  what  is  necessary,  and 
wish  for  nothing  else." 

"Ah,  madam!"  cried  Blanche,  "you  are  sufficiently 
revenged;  pray  put  an  end  to  my  distress." 

"It  is  at  an  end,"  said  the  fairy;  "the  king,  who  loves 
you  no  longer,  has  just  married  another  wife,  and  to- 
morrow his  officers  will  come  to  forbid  you  returning  any 
more  to  the  palace." 

It  happened  just  as  the  fairy  had  foretold,  and  Blanche 
passed  the  remainder  of  her  days  with  her  sister  Rosalind 
in  all  manner  of  happiness  and  content,  and  never 
thought  again  of  the  court,  unless  it  were  to  thank  the 
fairy  for  having  brought  her  back  to  her  native  village. 


FAIRER  THAN  A  FAIRY. 

THERE  formerly  reigned  a  king  who,  having  already 
had  several. ^children,  took  it  into  his  head  to  travel,  ac- 
companied by  liis  queen,  from  one  end  of  his  dominions 


OLD,  OLD  FAIHY  TALES. 


35 


to  the  other.  Accordingly  the  royal  wanderers  went  by 
easy  journeys  from  province  to  province,  making  a  short 
stay  in  each,  and  after  a  time  arrived  at  a  noble  castle 
situated  on  the  frontiers  of  their  kingdom,  where  the 
queen  gave  birth  to  a  daughter.  The  little  princess  was 


so  miraculously  beautiful,  even  at  the  moment  of  her 
birth,  that  the  courtiers,  for  once  sincere  in  their  admira- 
tion of  her  charms,  called  her  Fairer  than  a  Fairy,  and  it 
will  soon  be  manifest  that  she  well  deserved  so  illustrious 
a  name.  As  soon  as  the  queen  was  able  to  quit  her  room 
she  hastened  from  the  castle  to  join  her  husband,  who 
had  set  off  in  haste  some  days  before  to  defend  a  distant 
province  which  was  threatened  by  his  enemies. 

The  queen  left  the  little  Fairer  (as  we  shall  call  her) 
with  her  governess,  who  brought  up  her  joung  charge 


36  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

with  great  care;  and,  as  her  father  had  to  sustain  a  long 
and  cruel  war,  the  princess  in  retirement  had  leisure  to 
improve  both  in  mind  and  person.  Her  beauty  became 
famous  in  all  the  neighboring  kingdoms;  nothing  else 
was  spoken  of,  and  when  she  had  completed  her  twelfth 
year  she  looked  more  like  a  goddess  than  a  mere  mortal. 
About  this  time  one  of  her  brothers  left  the  army  to  visit 
her  during  a  truce,  and  the  prince  and  princess  formed 
an  inviolable  attachment. 

Meanwhile  the  renown  of  Fairer's  beauty,  and  particu- 
larly her  name,  had  so  irritated  the  fairies  that  they  con- 
trived a  thousand  schemes  of  vengeance  against  her,  to 
destroy  a  beauty  that'caused  them  so  much  jealousy. 

The  queen  of  the  fairies  in  the  neighborhood  was  not 
one  of  those  good  fairies  who  are  the  protectresses  of 
virtue,  and  who  take  a  pleasure  in  doing  good.  She 
had,  at  the  end  of  many  centuries,  at  length  attained  the 
honor  of  royalty  by  her  deep  skill  and  knowledge;  but 
she  was  very  small,  and  on  that  account  was  called 
Dwarfina. 

Accordingly,  Dwarfina  assembled  her  council,  and 
made  it  known  that  she  was  resolved  to  avenge  an  affront 
offered  to  all  the  handsome  persons  at  her  court,  and, 
indeed,  to  all  the  world;  adding  that  she  intended  to 
leave  her  palace  for  a  time,  in  order  to  visit  and  carry  off 
this  boasted  Fairer,  who  had  obtained  a  reputation  so  in- 
jurious to  their  charms.  No  sooner  had  Dwarfina  made 
known  this  determination  than  she  hastened  to  put  it 
into  execution;  and,  having  dressed  herself  in  a  simple 
gown,  transported  herself  to  the  castle  in  which  the  ob- 
ject of  her  journey  resided.  She  soon  made  herself 
familiar  there,  and,  by  the  charms  of  her  conversation, 
induced  the  princess'  ladies  to  receive  her  among  them. 
But  Dwarfina  was  no  less  astonished  than  displeased 
when,  having  carefully  inspected  and  examined  the  cas- 
tle, she  became  aware,  by  means  of  her  art,  that  it  was 
built  by  a  powerful  magic^.  ,  and  that  there  was  attached 
to  it,  and  its  gardens  and  terraces,  such  a  virtue  as  made 
it  impossible  to  use  any  kind  of  spell  or  enchantment 
against  its  inmates.  Fairer's  governess  was  not  ignorant 
of  this  circumstance;  and,  although  conscious  of  the,  in- 
valuable treasure  that  had  been  committed  to  her 
charge,  she  lived,  consequently,  in  perfect  security,  well 


Dwarflna  took  great  pains  to  insinuate  herself  into  the  princess'  good  grace 

Page  37.  Old,  Old  Fairy  Tales, 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRT  TALtfS.  37 

knowing  that  no  one  could  injure  her  precious  pupil 
so  long  as  she  should  keep  within  the  castle  and  its 
gardens.  Accordingly,  she  had  expressly  forbidden  her 
to  quit  the  palace,  and  Fairer,  who  was  very  prudent  and 
obedient,  took  care  not  to  disobey  this  injunction. 

Dwarfina  took  great  pains  to  insinuate  herself  into  the 
princess'  good  graces;  she  taught  her  several  fine  kinds  of 
needlework;  she  amused  her  by  relating  the  most  amus- 
ing stories,  and  neglected  nothing  that  could  tend  to  her 
delight,  until  she  succeeded  so  well  in  her  design  that 
the  princess  soon  was  never  seen  without  the  fairy. 

The  disguised  queen,  amid  all  these  cares,  never  forgot 
her  revenge,  but  incessantly  sought,  by  stratagem,  to 
entrap  Fairer  into  stepping  beyond  the  castle  gates, 
which  was  all  that  she  wanted  to  enable  her  to  carry  the 
hated  princess  off. 

One  day  they  were  in  the  castle  garden,  when 
Dwarfina  opened  a  little  door,  and,  having  passed  into 
the  fields  beyond,  she  performed  a  thousand  antic  tricks 
to  amuse  the  princess  and  her  ladies,  but  all  at  once,  pre- 
tending to  be  taken  ill,  she  fell  as  though  she  swooned. 
The  princess'  attendants  ran  to  her  assistance,  and 
Fairer  herself,  in  her  anxiety,  forgot  the  cautions  she 
had  received,  and  hastened  to  the  spot;  but  scarcely  had 
the  unfortunate  princess  passed  the  walls  of  the  castle 
when  Dwarfina  arose,  seized  her  rudely  by  the  arm,  and, 
making  a  circle  round  them,  a  thick  black  cloud  ap- 
peared, which  having  cleared  away,  the  earth  opened, 
and  from  the  chasm  issued  two  moles,  with  wings  of 
rose-leaves,  drawing  an  ebony  chariot.  Dwarfina  seated 
herself  therein,  pulling  the  princess  afte"  her,  when  the 
chariot  mounted  into  the  air  with  incredible  swiftness, 
and  soon  disappeared  to  the  young  ladies,  who,  by  their 
tears  and  cries,  made  known  to  every  one  in  the  castle 
the  loss  they  had  sustained. 

The  rapidity  with  which  the  chariot  rushed  through 
the  air  made  Fairer  so  giddy  that  she  became  for  some 
time  almost  insensible.;  at  last,  recovering  herself,  she 
looked  downward.  What  was  her  terror  when  she  per- 
ceived immediately  beneath  her  the  vast  extent  of  the 
fathomless  ocean!  She  uttered  a  piercing  shriek  and 
turned  round,  when,  seeing  her  dear  Dwarfina,  she  threw 
her  arms  round  the  fairy's  neck  and  embraced  her  ten- 


38  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

derly,  feeling  somewhat  tranquilized  to  frnd  some  one 
near  her  whom  she  loved.  But,  repulsing  her  rudely, 
the  fairy  said:  "Away,  impertinent!  behold  in  me  your 
mortal  enemy.  I  am  the  queen  of  the  fairies,  and  am 
now  about  to  make  you  suffer  for  the  arrogance  of  those 
who  dared  to  give  you  your  presumptuous  name." 

Fairer  trembled  when  she  heard  these  words  as  though 
a  thunderbolt  had  fallen  at  her  feet,  but  was  still  more 
frightened  at  the  terrible  speed  at  which  they  were 
traveling.  After  awhile  the  chariot  descended  into  the 
midst  of  the  magnificent  quadrangle  of  the  most  superb 
palace  ever  beheld. 

The  sight  of  so  charming  a  place  a  little  reassured  the 
timid  princess,  especially  when,  on  alighting  from  the 
chariot,  she  beheld  a  hundred  beautiful  young  ladies, 
who  hastened  courteously  to  welcome  the  fairy.  So 
charming  an  abode  did  not  seem  to  threaten  misfortune, 
and  Fairer  received  consolation  which  could  not  fail  to 
soothe  any  lady  in  her  great  distress,  when  she  remarked 
that  all  the  young  beauties  were  struck  with  admiration 
at  beholding  her,  and  heard  a  confused  murmur  of  praise 
and  envy  of  her  charms;  all  which  naturally  pleased  her. 

Alas!  how  short  are  all  human  pleasures,  especially 
those  arising  from  vanity!  Dwarfina  imperiously  gav-e 
orders  to  her  attendants  to  strip  Fairer  of  her  fine 
clothes,  expecting  thus  to  deprive  her  of  a  portion  of  her 
charms.  This  was  quickly  effected,  but  Dwarfina's  rage 
only  increased.  What  new  beauties  disclosed  themselves! 
what  confusion  for  all  the  fairies  present!  They  dressed 
her  in  rags,  but  her  simple'and  natural  beauty  triumphed 
over  the  costly  clothes  and  jewels  which  surrounded  her, 
and  never  did  she  appear  more  beautiful.  Dwarfina, 
therefore,  gave  orders  for  her  to  be  taken  away,  and 
ordered  the  tasks  which  she  had  allotted  to  be  given  to 
her  at  once. 

Thereupon  two  fairies  laid  hold  of  the  princess  and 
obliged  her  to  accompany  them  through  the  most  sump- 
tuous apartments  that,  were  ever  seen.  Fairer  contem- 
plated them  complacently,  and,  notwithstanding  her 
present  situation,  she  said  to  herself:  "Whatever  tor- 
ments they  may  prepare  for  me,  my  heart  whispers  that 
I  shall  not  always  be  miserable  in  this  charming  abode." 

Presently  they  came  to  a  broad  black  marble  staircase 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  39 

of  upward  of  a  thousand  steps,  which  the  fairies  made 
Fairer  descend-  it  was  so  long  that  the  princess  thought 
she  must  be  going  to  the  abysses  under  the  earth.  At 
last  she  arrived  at  a  small  cell  wainscoted  with  ebony, 
where  her  companions  informed  her  she  must  sleep  on  a 
little  straw  which  lay  in  one  corner;  while  in  another 
stood  an  ounce  of  bread  and  a  mug  of  water  for  her  sup- 
per. Thence  the  princess  was  led  into  a  long  gallery,  of 
which  the  walls,  from  the  ceiling  to  the  floor,  were  also 
of  black  -marble,  arid  which  were  lighted  by  the  feeble 
rays  of  five  jet  lamps,  which  shed  a  somber  and  most 
gloomy  light,  rather  calculated  to  inspire  terror  than 
comfort.  These  sorrowful  walls  were  thickly  covered 
from  top  to  bottom  with  a  complete  network  of  spiders' 
webs,  which  had  the  singular  property  of  multiplying  the 
more  they  were  swept  away.  The  two  fairies  then  told 
the  princess  that  if  she  did  not  cleanse  the  walls  of  that 
gallery  by  daybreak  next  morning,  she  would  undergo 
the  most  terrible  punishment.  They  finally  placed  a 
ladder  against  the  wall,  and,  putting  a  cane-broom  into 
her  hands,  desired  her  to  work  away,  and  quitted  the 
gallery.  Fairer,  unacquainted  with  the  fatality  of  the 
spiders'  webs,  although  the  gallery  was  very  long,  hero- 
ically resolved  to  do  her  best;  so,  taking  the  broom,  she 
stepped  lightly  up  the  ladder.  Alas!  alas!  what  was  her 
astonishment  when,  endeavoring  to  clear  the  marble  of 
the  webs,  she  found  that  the}7  only  augmented!  She 
wearied  herself  with  exertion;  but,  finding  that  it  was  all 
in  vain,  she  threw  down  her  broom,  descended  from  the 
ladder,  and,  seating  herself  on  the  lowest  step,  burst  into 
tears  lamenting  her  cruel  fate.  Her  sobs  were  so  deep 
and  so  numerous  that  they  quite  exhausted  her  strength, 
and  she  was  on  the  point  of  falling  on  the  marble  pave- 
ment, when  her  eyes  encountered  a  strong  glare  of  light. 
The  whole  length  of  the  gallery  became  instantly  illumi- 
nated, and  Fairer  saw  kneeling  before  her  a  young  man  of 
such  handsome  features  and  figure  that  had  it  not  been 
for  his  dress  she  would  have  taken  him  for  Cupid  him- 
self. She  was  doubtful  whether  all  this  light  did  not 
proceed  from  the  young  stranger's  eyes,  so  sparkling  and 
brilliant  did  they  appear  to  her.  The  young  man  con- 
tinued to  regard  her  attentively  without  rising;  at  last 
Fairer  said  to  him  in  astonishment:  "Who  are  you,  gal- 


40  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

lant  stranger?  Are  you  a  god? — are  you  the  god  of 
love?"  "I  am  not  a  god,"  answered  the  youth,  "but  I 
have  more  love  in  my  heart  than  there  is  in  the  whole 
world  besides.  I  am  Pyrrho,  son  of  the  queen  of  fairies; 
I  am  in  love  with  you,  and  am  come  to  your  assistance." 
With  that  Pyrrho  picked  up  the  broom  which  Fairer  had 
thrown  on  the  floor,  and,  touching  the  cobwebs  with  it, 
they  immediately  changed  into  a  piece  of  gold-tissue  of 
beautiful  workmanship,  while  the  flame  of  the  lamps 
became  strong  and  bright;  then,  presenting  to  the 
princess  a  golden  key:  "You  will  find,"  said  Pyrrho,  "a 
keyhole  in  the  largest  panel  of  the  wainscot  in  your 
closet,  into  which  this  key  will  fit;  unlock  it  very  gently. 
Adieu,  fair  princess;  I  quit  you  only  to  avoid  being  sus- 
pected of  having  assisted  you.  Your  task  done,  you  may 
rest  in  peace;  you  will  find  all  that  you  want  in  the 
closet  in  your  prison  chamber;"  then,  kneeling  before 
the  princess,  Pyrrho  kissed  her  hand  and  quitted  the 
gallery. 

Fairer,  more  astonished  at  this  adventure  than  at  any 
of  the  previous  events  of  the  day,  returned  to  her  ebony 
closet.  She  was  looking  for  the  panel  which  Pyrrho  had 
specified,  when  she  heard  the  sweetest  voice  she  had 
ever  listened  to,  complaining  in  the  most  tender  and 
sorrowful  accents.  The  princess  fancied  that  the  voice 
must  belong  to  some  unfortunate  creature,  like  herself, 
placed  in  confinement,  to  be  tormented;  she  listened, 
therefore,  attentively.  "Alas!  what  shall  I  do?"  said 
the  voice.;  "I  am  commanded  to  change  this  bushel  of 
acorns  into  an  equal  quantity  of  oriental  pearls." 

The  princess,  less  surprised  than  she  would  have  been 
two  hours  before,  knocked  two  or  three  times  against  the 
wainscot,  and  said  aloud:  "If  hard  tasks  are  set  within 
.these  walls,  miracles  likewise  are  performed:  do  not  de- 
spair. But  tell  me,  I  entreat  you,  your  history,  and  I 
will  return  your  confidence  by  informing  you  of  mine." 

"I  am  a  king's  daughter,"  answered  the  voice,  "and  was 
pronounced  beautiful  from  my  birth,  at  which,  however, 
no  fairies  were  present  to  assist.  You  are,  I  suppose, 
aware  that  those  capricious  beings  have  an  aversion  for 
all  who  have  not  been  under  their  protection  from  the 
cradle." 

"Alas!    I  know  it  but  too   well,"  answered  Fairer, 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  41 

"I  am  a  beauty,  like  yourself,  and  the  daughter  of  a  king; 
I  am  also  unfortunate,  because  I  do  not  owe  my  beauty 
to  their  gifts." 

"We  are  then  true  companions  in  affliction,"  answered 
the  invisible.  "But  you  are  in  love?" 

"It  matters  not,"  said  Fairer  to  herself;  then  she 
added  aloud:  "Go  on  with  your  story,  and  do  not  inter- 
rupt yourself  to  ask  me  questions." 

"I  was  universally  acknowledged  to  be  the  fairest 
creature  ever  seen,"  pursued  the  voice,  "and  I  had  many 
friends  and  csuitors;  princes  came  from  far  and  near,  at- 
tracted by  the  renown  of  my  beauty,  to  demand  my  hand 
in  marriage.  I  must  tell  you  that  I  am  called  Euryanthe. 
Among  the  numerous  pretenders  to  my  hand  and  heart, 
one  young  prince  was  particuarly  assiduous  in  his  atten- 
tions. I  returned  his  affection,  and  gave  him  every  rea- 
son to  hope  for  the  fulfillment  of  his  wishes.  Our  wed- 
ding-day was  fixed,  when  the  fairies,  jealous  at  seeing  me 
so  sought  after,  and  about  to  be  so  happy,  and  unable  to 
endure  the  thoughts  of  a  mortal's  being  so,  except 
through  themselves,  carried  me  off  one  day  from  my 
father's  palace,  and  conveyed  me  to  my  present  wretched 
prison.  One  of  them  has  visited  me  to-day  to  tell  me 
that  I  shall  be  strangled  to-morrow  morning  if  by  that 
time"  I  have  not  executed  a  ridiculous  and  impracticable 
task  that  they  have  assigned  to  me;  now  inform  me  who 
you  are." 

"I  shall  have  told  you  nearly  all,"  answered  the  prin- 
cess, "when  I  shall  have  told  you  my  name.  I  am  called 
'Fairer  than  a  Fairy.'  ; 

"You  are  then  very,  very  fair,"  replied  Princess  Eu- 
ryanthe; "I  have  a  great  desire  to  see  you." 

"I  am  equally  anxious  to  see  you/'  returned  Fairer. 
"Is  there  not  a  door  somewhere  about  here?  for  I  have  a 
little  key  which  may,  perhaps,  assist  us  to  satisfy  our 
mutual  curiosity." 

Looking  narrowly  about,  our  princess  discovered  a 
small  keyhole,  to  which  she  applied  the  little  golden  key, 
and  succeeded  in  unlocking  the  door.  Having  pushed  it 
open,  the  two  princesses'  eyes  met,  and  each  was  much  sur- 
prised by  the  wonderful  beauty  of  the  other.  When  their 
embraces  and  congratulations  were  over,  Fairer  could  not 
forbear  laughing  to  observe  that  Eu/yanthe  had  been  very 


42  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

busily  employed  in  rubbing  her  acorns  with  a  littlo  white 
stone,  as  she  had  been  commanded.  She  then  informed 
her  new  friend  of  the  task  that  had  been  given  her,  and 
that  tne  most  charming  person  she  had  ever  seen  had 
wrought  a  miracle  in  her  favor. 

"But  who  could  it  be?"  said  Euryanthe. 

"I  think  it  was  a  young  man,"  answered  Fairer. 

"A  young  man!"  cried  Euryanthe;  ."ah!  you  blush; 
you  are  in  love  with  him." 

"No,  not  yet,"  answered  our  princess;  "but  he  told 
me  that  he  is  in  love  with  me;  and  if  he  really  loves  me, 
as  he  said  he  did,  he  will  come  to  your  assistance." 

Scarcely  had  Fairer  pronounced  these  words  when  the 
acorns  in  the  bushel  began  to  move,  and  continued  mov- 
ing, without  any  apparent  cause,  for  some  time,  when 
they  were  suddenly  changed  into  large  pear-shaped  pearls, 
of  the  first  quality,  far  superior,  indeed,  to  that  of  the 
pearl  which  Queen  Cleopatra  dissolved  in  the  cup  she  pre- 
sented at  the  celebrated  banquet  to  Mark  Antony.  Our 
two  princesses  were  agreeably  surprised  by  this  adventure, 
and  Fairer,  who  began  to  grow  accustomed  to  such  prod- 
igies, taking  Euryanthe  by  the  hand,  they  repassed  into 
her  ebony  closet.  Fairer  immediately  resumed  her  search 
for  the  panel  mentioned  by  Pyrrho,  which  she  soon  dis- 
covered, and  applying  her  little  golden  key  thereto,  un- 
locked it,  and,  pushing  open  the  panel,  entered  an  apart- 
ment of  which  the  magnificence  surprised  and  affected  her, 
because  she  recognized  in  all  she  saw  marks  of  her  lover's 
thonghtfulness.  The  floor  was  strewn  with  violets  and 
other  sweet-smelling  flowers,  which  exhaled  the  most  fra- 
grant perfume,  and  in  the  center  of  this  delightful  room 
stood  a  table,  on  which  was  laid  out  a  most  sumptuous  en- 
tertainment, consisting  of  rare  and  delicate  viands;  while 
in  different  parts  of  the  table  were  little  fountains  of 
wine  and  lemonade,  flowing  into  basins  of  green  por- 
phyry. The  young  princesses  seated  themselves  un- 
hesitatingly in  two  chairs  of  ivory,  enriched  with 
emeralds,  and  ate  of  this  noble  feast  with  good  appetite. 
Their  repast  finished,  the  table  disappeared  and  was 
replaced  by  a  most  deliciously  perfumed  bath,  in  which 
having  indulged  for  some  time,  it  vanished,  and  made 
way  for  a  superb  toilette,  and  large  baskets  of  gold  wire, 
filled  with  linen  so  white  thai;  it  was  a  luxury  to  look  on 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  43 

it.  A  bed,  curiously  shaped,  but  gorgeously  furnished, 
stood  at  one  end  of  this  remarkable  apartment,  which 
was  bordered  by  orange-trees  in  full  flower,  growing  in 
vases  set  with  emeralds  and  rubies,  vhile  columns  of 
cornelian,  disposed  at  regular  distances,  supported  the 
golden  ceiling,  and  between  each  pillar  was  a  splendid 
crystal  mirror,  which  reached  from  the  cornice  to  the 
floor. 

Princess  Euryanthe,  admiring  her  companion's  good 
fortune,  said  to  her:  "Your  lover  is  as  powerful  as  he  is 
deeply  enamored,  and  apparently  neglects  nothing  to 
gratify  your  wishes;  yours  is  not  a  common  fate."  A 
musical  clock,  which  stood  in  the  room,  now  sounded 
midnight,  by  repeating  twelve  times  the  name  of  Pyrrho. 
Fairer  blushed,  thew  herself  on  her  bed  and  tried  to 
sleep,  but  her  repose  was  interrupted  by  the  image  of  her 
lover. 

When  the  morrow  came  the  court  of  the  queen  of  the 
fairies  was  thrown  into  the  utmost  astonishment  at  be- 
holding the  gallery  perfectly  freed  from  cobwebs,  and 
at  sight  of  the  bushel  of  pearls,  while  they  found  each 
of  the  princesses  quietly  seated  in  her  prison  chamber. 
Having  assembled  in  council  to  determine  what  tasks 
should  next  be  given  to  the  objects  of  their  hatred,  the 
fairies  commanded  Euryanthe  to  go  to  the  seashore  and 
write  on  the  sand,  taking  especial  care  that  what  she 
wrote  should  not  be  effaced  by  the  waves;  while  Fairer 
received  orders  to  go  to  the  foot  of  the  Sugar-Loaf  Moun- 
tain, to  ascend  to  its  summit,  and  to  bring  thence  to 
them  a  vase  filled  with  the  water  of  immortality.  As 
there  was  no  means  of  reaching  the  top  of  this  mountain 
without  flying,  they  gave  the  princess  feathers  and  wax, 
hoping  that,  like  another  Icarus,  she  would  make  herself 
wings,  and  thereby  cause  her  destruction.  Euryanthe 
and  Fairer  sighed  on  hearing  these  commands,  and,  hav- 
ing tenderly  embraced,  they  separated,  as  sorrowfully  as 
though  they  were  certain  they  should  never  see  each 
other  again.  Euryanthe  was  then  conducted  to  the  sea- 
shore and  Fairer  to  the  foot  of  the  Sugar-Loaf  Mountain. 

Arrived  at  her  destination,  Fairer  took  the  feathers 
and  wax,  and  vainly  attempted  to  construct  something 
with  them  in  the  shape  of  wings;  but  after  a  dozen  un- 
successful attempts,  her  thoughts  began  to  wander  tQ 


44  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

Pyrrho.  "If  he  really  loved  me,"  she  said,  "he  would 
come  again  to  my  assistance/'  The  word  assistance  had 
scarcely  passed  her  lips,  when  Pyrrho  appeared  before 
her,  looking  a  thousand  times  more  handsome  than  on 
the  preceding  night.  Daylight  was  in  truth  singularly 
favorable  to  him. 

"Do  you  doubt  the  strength  of  my  passion?"  said 
he;  "is  there  anything  too  difficult  for  me  to  perform 
in  token  of  my  love?"  Pyrrho  then  requested  Fairer  to 
take  off  her  slippers,  in  which  she  would  not  be  per- 
mitted to  approach  the  fountain  of  immortality,  and 
suddenly  transformed  himself  into  an  eagle.  The  prin- 
cess could  not  repress  a  slight  feeling  of  regret  at  behold- 
ing Pyrrho's  charming  person  so  metamorphosed;  but 
the  eagle,  crouching  at  her  feet  and  unfolding  his  wings, 
soon  made  her  comprehend  his  object.  She  seated  herself 
on  his  back,  twining  her  fair  arms  round  his  majestic 
neck,  and  he  gently  rose  into  the  air.  It  would  be  no 
easy  matter  to  pronounce  which  was  the  most  delighted, 
Fairer,  at  escaping  death  in  executing  the  cruel  order  she 
had  received  from  the  fairies,  or  Pyrrho,  at  being  charged 
with  so  precious  a  burden. 

The  eagle  carried  the  princess  gently  and  safely  to  the 
summit  of  the  mountain,  where  she  heard  the  agreeable 
concert  of  a  thousand  winged  songsters  who  came  to  do 
homage  to  the  illustrious  bird  which  had  borne  her 
thither.  On  the  very  top  of  the  Sugar-Loaf  Mountain 
was  a  flowery  plain,  surrounded  by  groves  of  tall  cedar- 
trees;  and  from  the  center  of  this  plain  arose  a  little 
rivulet,  whose  silvery  waters  meandered  over  a  fine  sand, 
composed  of  gold  dust  and  seed  diamonds.  Fairer,  kneel- 
ing on  the  bank,  took  some  of  the  precious  water  in  her 
hand  and  tasted  it.  She  then  filled  her  vase,  and,  turn- 
ing to  her  eagle:  "Ah!"  said  ehe,  "how  happy  should  I 
be  could  my  friend  Euryanthe  drink  of  this  water." 
The  words  had  scarcely  passed  iier  lips  when  the  eagle 
flew  to  the  toot  of  the  mountain,  seized  one  of  Fairer's 
slippers,  and,  returning  with  it  to  the  stream,  filled  it, 
and  flew  away  to  the  beach,  on  whose  sands  the  Princess 
Euryanthe  was  vainly  endeavoring  to  write  in  indelible 
characters. 

His  mission  fulfilled,  the  eagle  returned  to  Fairer,  who 
reseated  herself  on  his  back  and  expressed  a*wish  to  re- 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  45 

join  her  dear  friend.  Pyrrho,  to  whom  her  slightest 
wish  was  law,  instantly  directed  his  flight  toward  the 
beach,  where  Euryanthe  was  still  occupied  with  her 
fruitless  labor,  the  waves  effacing  whatever  she  wrote  as 
soon  as  it  was  completed. 

"What  barbarity/' said  the 'princess  to  Fairer  when 
she  saw  her,  "to  command  me  to  achieve  an  impossibility! 
But  I  guess,  from  your  singular  mode  of  traveling,  that 
you  have  succeeded  in  obtaining  what  was  required  of 
you." 

Fairer  having  alighted,  and  being  moved  by  the  sight 
of  her  friend's  affliction,  turned  to  her  lover  and  said: 
"Show  me  yet  another  and  more  convincing  proof  of 
your  power." 

"Or  rather  of  my  love,"  interrupted  the  prince;  and, 
without  giving  his  mistress  time  to  finish  her  request, 
he  resumed  his  natural  shape. 

When  Euryanthe  saw  the  beauty  of  his  face  and  per- 
son, surprise  and  pleasure  sparkled  in  her  eyes,  while 
Fairer  blushed,  yet,  by  an  involuntary  movement,  turned 
her  face  on  her  lover  to  conceal  her  agitation  from  her 
friend:  "Do  as  I  bid  you,"  said  she,  with  playful  petu- 
lance. 

Pyrrho  saw  that  he  was  loved;  and,  willing  to  put  an 
end  to  her  anxiety,  desired  her  to  read  what  she  would 
find  written  on  the  sand,  and  disappeared  more  quickly 
than  a  flash  of  lightning. 

At  the  moment  of  Pyrrho's  disappearance  a  wave 
rolled  to  Fairer's  feet  and,  then  retiring,  discovered  a 
brazen  tablet  as  firmly  sunk  in  the  sand  as  though  it  had 
been  there  from  the  creation  of  the  world,  and  to  all  ap- 
pearance immovable.  The  princesses  regarded  it  with 
wonder,  and,  while  still  looking  at  it,  an  invisible  hand 
engraved  thereon,  in  deep  letters,  the  following  stanzas: 

"  Vulgar  lovers'  oaths  and  vows 

Are  like  letters  traced  in  sand; 
The  lightest  wave  that  o'er  tnem  flows 
Leaves  a  bare  and  noteless  strand: 

«'  But  the  love  your  charms  inspire, 

Princess,  fairer  than  a  fay, 
Is  graven  deep,  in  words  of  fire, 
On  a  heart  that  woos  thy  §way." 


48  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALfiS. 

"And  is  it  really  you?"  she  cried  repeatedly,  until 
at  last,  convinced  of  her  lover's  identity,  and  mindful 
of  her  present  misery,  she  said:  "But  are  you  the  fa- 
vorite of  the  malicious  fairy?  And  do  I  behold  you  with 
a  claim  to  that  fine  title?" 

"Doubt  it  not,"  answered  her  lover;  "it  is  to  that 
favor  that  i?e  shall  owe  the  termination  of  our  misfor- 
tunes." 

The  prince  then  related  to  Euryanthe  that,  in  despair 
at  her  loss,  he  had  consulted  a  hermit  as  to  where  she 
then  was;  that  the  old  man  had  told  him  that,  when  he 
next  saw  her,  it  would  be  in  Fairyland,  and  had  given 
him  the  means  of  finding  her.  He  was,  however, 
stopped  in  his  search  by  the  malicious  old  fairy,  who  had 
conceived  a  passion  for  him.  "In  pursuance  of  my  ad- 
viser's instructions,"  continued  the  prince,  "I  did  not 
entirely  repulse  her,  and,  by  my  duplicity  I  gained  a 
complete  ascendency  over  her  mind,  "became  the  master 
of  her  treasures  and  the  minister  of  her  will.  My  ancient 
inamorata  has  just  set  out  on  a  journey  of  eighteen 
thousand  miles,  and  will  not  returntfor  a  fortnight;  we 
must  make  the  best  use  of  this  opportunity  for  effecting 
our  escape.  I  know  where  the  fairy  keeps  her  invisible 
ring,  and  will  go  and  fetch  it.  You  shall  put  it  on,  and 
will  thus  be  able  to  quit  your  dungeon  unperceived;  I 
can  leave  the  arcade  openly." 

"Do  not  forget,"  said  Eu^anthe,  "the  elixir  of  per- 
petual youth  and  beauty;  I  would  drink  of  it  myself  and 
give  some  to  a  dear  friend  of  mine." 

The  prince  laughed. 

"And  where  shall  we  go?"  asked  Euryanthe. 

"To  the  Queen  of  the  Fairies,"  replied  her  lover. 

"No,  not  there,"  said  the  princess;  "we  shall  be  put 
to  death." 

"The  sage  who  protects  me,"  pursued  he,  "counsels 
me  to  conduct  you  to  the  place  whence  you  were  brought 
if  I  would  insure  my  happiness;  and  he  has  never  yet 
deceived  me." 

"Be  it  so,"  said  Euryanthe;  "let  us  depart  immedi- 
ately." 

Orontes  (so  was  Euryanthe's  lover  called)  handed  to 
his  mistress  a  china  flagon,  which  contained  the  elixir  of 
perpetual  youth  and  beauty.  Anxious  to  appear  more 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  49 

lovely  in  the  prince's  eyes,  she  drank  deeply  of  it,  forget- 
ting that  the  ring  which  she  wore  on  her  finger  rendered 
her  invisible.  Then,  taking  Orontes'  arm  and  carrying 
the  flagon  in  her  hand,  she  traversed  thus  the  whole  of 
the  arcade,  and  reached  the  fairy  queen's  palace  with 
her  lover. 

Arrived  there,  Euryanthe  pulled  off  the  invisible  ring 
and  gave  it  to  Orontes.  Then  the  lovely  princess  became 
visible  to  her  lover,  who,  to  her  great  regret,  made  him- 
self invisible  in  his  turn  by  putting  on  the  ring,  and  they 
then  entered  Dwarfina's  palace. 

The  fairies  looked  at  each  other  in  the  utmost  astonish- 
ment when  they  beheld  Euryanthe  enter  with  the  flagon 
of  elixir.  Dwarfina,  lowering  her  brow,  said:  "Let  the 
insolent  be  put  into  close  confinement.  I  see  that,  our 
stratagems  produce  no  effect,  and  she  must  be  put  to 
death  without  any  further  trouble." 

Euryanthe  trembled  violently  when  she  heard  this 
cruel  speech;  but  Orontes,  who  was  still  by  her  side, 
bade  her  be  of  good  cheer. 

We  will  now  turn  to  Fairer  than  a  Fairy  (who  was  con- 
ducted to  the  Forest  of  Marvels),  and  state  why  she  was 
commanded  to  take  the  silver-footed  hind,  and  what  was 
her  success. 

There  had  been  formerly  a  queen  of  the  fairies  who 
had  attained  justly  that  noble  distinction.  She  was  fair, 
amiable,  and  learned,  and  had  many  lovers,  whose  at 
tentions,  however,  were  thrown  away  upon  her.  Oc- 
cupied as  she  ever  was  in  protecting  virtue,  she  could  not 
find  time  for  listening  to  the  sighs  of  her  admirers.  Of 
her  numerous  suitors,  there  was  one  whom  her  indiffer- 
ence rendered  particularly  miserable;  and  it  will 
naturally  be  inferred  that  he  was  the  one  who  was  most 
ardent  in  his  passion  for  the  queen. 

One  day,  his  entreaties  being  still  unable  to  move  her, 
he  protested,  in  his  despair,  that  he  would  kill  himself. 
To  this  threat  'she  paid  no  attention,  regarding  it  as  the 
mere  bombast  so  frequently  employed  by  lovers  in  their 
threats  to  their  mistresses,  and  which  they  are  far  from 
ever  intending  to  fulfill.  However,  she  was  informed 
shortly  after  that  he  had  thrown  himself  into  the  sea. 
An  old  hermit,  under  whose  care  the  unfortunate  youth 
had  been  educated,  and  who  was  deeply  skilled  in  magic, 


52  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

branches  over  her,  forming  a  kind  of  canopy  to  her  bed, 
which  was  strewed  with  its  blossoms.  Two  turtle-doves, 
cooing  in  a  bush  hard  by,  reminded  Fairer  of  her 
Pyrrho's  affection.  Strawberries  and  various  other  kinds 
of  excellent  fruit  were  growing  in  profusion  near  her 
couch,  of  which  the  princess  ate  heartily,  and  felt  as  re- 
freshed as  if  she  had  partaken  of  the  choicest  viands. 
When  she  had  satisfied  her  appetite,  "Oh!  attentive 
Pyrrho!"  she  exclaimed,  "but  for  your  timely  assistance 
I  must  have  perished;  I  no  longer  murmur  at  my  hard 
fate,  and  only  wish  to  see  you  to  make  me  quite  con- 
tented." 

Fairer  would  have  continued  her  soliloquy,  but  at  the 
moment  she  observed  the  silver-footed  hind  resting  on 
its  haunches  and  quietly  watching  her.  She  made  sure 
of  taking  it  this  time,  and  having  gathered  a  handful  of 
grass,  offered  it  to  the  hind,  holding  her  silken  halter  in 
the  other  hand;  but  the  hind  skipped  onward,  and  when 
it  had  run  a  little  distance  from  the  princess  resumed  its 
sitting  posture  and  gazed  earnestly  on  its  fair  pursuer. 
The  princess  passed  the  whole  of  the  second  day  in  fruit- 
less attempts  to  catch  it,  and  when  night  set  in  passed  it 
as  she  had  passed  the  preceding.  On  the  third  morning 
she  was  awakened  as  before,  and  that  and  the  following 
days  and  nights  were  spent  in  the  same  way.  At  last,  on 
the  fifth  morning,  when  Fairer  opened  her  eyes  she 
fancied  it  was  lighter  than  usual,  and,  on  looking  up, 
perceived  her  lover  his  eyes  sparkling  with  all  the  love 
she  inspired:  he  was  kneeling  near  her  and  kissing  her 
feet.  Pleased  by  his  presence  and  gratified  by  his  re- 
spectful attention,  "You  are  come,  then,  at  last,"  said 
Fairer;  "but  though  I  have  not  seen  you  latterly,  I  have, 
at  least,  experienced  marks  of  your  goodness." 

"Say,  rather,  of  my^love,  Fairer  than  a  Fairy,"  inter- 
rupted Pyrrho.  "My  mother  suspects'  that  I  assist 
you,  and  has  placed  me  in  confinement,  from  which  I 
have  only  escaped  for  a  few  moments  by  the  assistance  of 
a  kind  fairy,  my  friend.  I  have  only  time  to  assure  you 
of  my  eternal  fidelity,  and  to  add  that  you  will  see  me 
again  in  the  evening.  If  fortune  favors  us  to-morrow, 
we  shall  be  happy.  Adieu." 

Pyrrho  disappeared,  and  the  silver-footed  hind  appear- 
ing, the  princess  went  in  chase  of  it.  "When  the  fifth 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  53 

night  came  she  perceived,  very  near  to  her,  a  small  bright 
flame,  which  sufficed  to  discover  her  lover.  "Here  is  my 
fiery  wand,"  said  he;  "place  it  before  you,  and  follow  un- 
hesitatingly wherever  it  shall  lead  you."  When  it  stops 
you  will  discover,  by  its  light,  a  heap  of  dry  leaves.  Set 
fire  to  the  leaves,  and  fearlessly  enter  the  opening  you 
will  then  perceive;  if  you  there  find  the  skin  of  an  animal 
which  you  recognize,  burn  it;  the  stars,  our  friends, 
will  take  care  of  the  rest.  Adieu." 

Fairer  would  have  been  glad  to  have  received  more 
ample  instructions,  but  her  lover  was  gone;  so  she  un- 
hesitatingly placed  the  wand  before  her,  and  followed 
where  it  led.  It  went  on  before  her  for  more  than  two 
hours,  and  she  began  to  grow  very  tired,  when  it  stopped, 
and,  by  its  light,  Fairer  perceived  the  heap  of  dry  leaves, 
to  which  she  immediately  set  light.  The  leaves  in- 
stantly threw  up  a  bright  blaze,  and  discovered  a  high 
mountain,  with  an  opening  toward  its  base,  nearly  con- 
cealed by  brambles;  the  princess  pushed  them  aside  with 
her  wand,  and  entered  the  mouth  of  the  opening.  She 
found  herself  in  total  darkness;  but,  walking  forward, 
presently  came  to  a  large  and  noble  hall,  handsomely 
furnished  and  brilliantly  lighted  with  many  chandeliers; 
but  what  struck  her  with  most  astonishment  was  to  per- 
ceive the  skins  of  several  wild  beasts  suspended  from 
golden  hooks,  which  she  took  at  first  for  the  beasts  them- 
selves. She  gazed  on  them  for  some  time  with  fear; 
when,  averting  her  eyes,  she  perceived  in  the  middle  of 
the  hall  a  fine  tall  palm-tree,  from  a  branch  of  which  was 
hanging  the  skin  of  the  silver-footed  hind. 

Fairer  was  delighted  at  this  sight;  she  took  the  skin  on 
the  end  of  her  wand,  and  carried  it  to  the  fire  she  had 
lighted  at  the  mouth  of  the  grotto.  The  flames  immedi- 
ately consumed  it;  and  the  princess  returned  joyfully  to 
the  hall,  and  penetrated  into  a  long  suit  of  magnificent 
apartments.  She  stopped  in  one,  in  which  she  saw  sev- 
eral little  beds  arranged  on  a  Persian  carpet,  one  of  them 
being  of  richer  materials  than  the  others,  and  placed 
under  a  pavilion  of  cloth  of  gold.  But  she  had  no  time 
to  reflect  on  the  singularity  of  what  she  saw,  for  she  sud- 
denly heard  loud  peals,  of  laughter,  and  a  confused  and 
loud  noise  of  several  voices. 

Fairer,  turning  her  steps  in  the.  direction  of  these 


54  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

sounds,  entered  into  a  wonderful  apartment,  in  which 
were  seated  fifteen  young  persons  of  divine  beauty. 
They  rose  at  her  entrance,  apparently  as  much  surprised 
at  the  appearance  of  the  princess  as  was  she  at  beholding 
them.  The  extreme  loveliness  of  her  person,  too, 
charmed  them  all.  An  attentive  silence  having  suc- 
ceeded the  cries  of  admiration  which  burst  from  them  at 
first,  one  of  the  fair  fifteen,  more  beautiful  than  her  com- 
panions, advanced  with  a  gay  and  smiling  countenance  to 
meet  our  charming  princess.  "I  cannot  doubt,"  she 
said,  "that  you  are  my  deliverer,  as  no  one  ever  enters 
here  who  is  not  clothed  in  the  skin  of  an  animal  such  as 
you  saw  suspended  in  the  hall;  it  has  been  the  fate  of  all 
the  lovely  persons  you  see  around  me.  After  ten  days 
unsuccessfully  spent  in  hunting  me,  they  have  all  been 
changed  into  animals  like  myself,  excepting  that  during 
the  night  we  all  resume  our  natural  shapes.  You,  fair 
princess,  but  that  you  were  destined  to  effect  my  deliver- 
ance, would  have  been  transformed  into  a  white  rabbit." 

"A  white  rabbit!"  cried  Fairer.  "Oh,  madam,  I  am 
very  happy  to  have  preserved  my  proper  form,  and  to 
have  disenchanted  so  charming  a  person  as  you  appear 
to  be." 

"Yes,  you  have  restored  us  all  to  liberty,"  answered 
the  fairy;  "let  us  pass  the  remainder  of  this  night  to- 
gether, and  to-morrow  we  will  repair  to  my  palace  to  fill 
all  the  court  with  joy  and  astonishment." 

No  pen  could  do  justice  to  the  gayety  of  which  that 
charming  abode  was  on  that  night  the  witness,  or  to  the 
ecstasies  of  the  fair  inmates  about  to  be  restored  to  life, 
so  to  speak.  They  were  all  of  the  same  age  as  on  the 
day  they  commenced  their  hunting  expedition  in  the 
Forest  of  Marvels,  and  the  eldest  of  them  was  not  yet 
twenty.  When  the  queen  was  inclined  to  repose,  she  in- 
vited Fairer  to  share  her  bed,  and  expressed  a  wish  to 
know  her  history.  The  princess  related  it  so  aifectingly, 
yet  in  such  artless  and  truthful  expressions,  that  the 
fairy  resolved  from  that  moment  to  take  her  under  her 
protection,  and  to  crown  her  and  her  faithful  Pyrrho's 
affection  with  lasting  happiness.  Fairer  did  not  forget 
her  friend  Euryauthe,  for  whom  the  fairy  conceived  an 
almost  equal  affection. 

After  a  lengthened  conversation,  which  they  frequently 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  55 

Interrupted  by  assurances  of  eternal  friendship,  the  fairy 
and  the  princess  fell  into  a  profound  sleep. 

The  next  day  they  all  set  out  for  the  palace,  intending 
agreeably  to  surprise  the  fairies.  They  quitted  without 
regret  the  Forest  of  Marvels,  and  in  due  time  reached 
their  destination.  As  they  approached  the  outer  court 
their  ears  were  saluted  by  an  agreeable  concert,  which 
seemed  to  proceed  from  a  full  and  skillful  military  band. 
When  they  entered  the  quadrangle  it  was  crowded  by  an 
immense  concourse  of  people. 

"We  come  in  the  very  nick  of  time,"  said  the  fairy; 
"this  must  be  some  holiday.  Let  us  see  what  is  doing." 

The  fairy  cleared  a  passage  through  the  throng,  and 
passed  on  with  her  troop.  Directly  she  was  recognized, 
loud  shouts  rent  the  air,  and  great  was  the  universal  joy 
at  her  return;  but,  continuing  to  move  onward,  a  strange 
sight  met  her  eyes.  A  young  maiden,  more  charming 
than  the  graces  and  as  beautiful  as  Venus,  was  tied  to  a 
stake,  and  was  apparently  about  to  be  burned. 

Fairer  immediately  recognized  her  friend  Euryanthe. 
She  uttered  a  piercing  shriek,  but  her  terror  and  surprise 
even  redoubled  when  in  a  moment  her  friend  vanished, 
and  in  her  place  appeared  a  young  man,  so  handsome 
that  he  immediately  attracted  the  looks  of  all  present. 
Fairer  rushed  to  the  spot  where  the  youth  was  bound, 
threw  herself  on  his  neck,  and,  bursting  into  tears,  ex- 
claimed: "It  is  my  brother,  it  is  my  brother!" 

It  was  indeed  her  brother,  who  was  also  the  favored 
lover  of  Euryanthe,  and  who,  fearing  that  she  would  be 
put  to  death,  had  given  her  the  invisible  ring  to  enable 
her  to  escape  from  the  fate  which  the  cruel  Dwarfina  had 
prepared  for  her. 

The  brother  and  sister  embraced  again  and  again,  and 
their  affectionate  caresses  were  shared  by  the  invisible 
Euryanthe,  whose  voice  was  audible  while  her  person 
could  not  be  seen.  In  the  meanwhile,  the  fairies 
present,  astonished  beyond  measure  at  these  extraordi- 
nary events,  manifested  the  utmost  joy  at  the  return  of 
their  good  queen,  and,  throwing  themselves  at  her  feet, 
kissed  her  hands  and  the  border  of  her  robe.  Some  be- 
came speechless  with  astonishment,  some  wept  for  joy, 
while  others  laughed  hysterically.  The  wicked  fairies,  or 
partisans  of  Dwarfina.,  also  affected  to  welcome  her  return 


56  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

with  eagerness,  and  their  policy  gave  an  air  of  sincerity 
to  their  false  demonstrations. 

Dwarfina  herself,  furious  at  her  virtuous  predecessor's 
return,  concealed  her  real  feelings  with  an  art  of  which 
she  alone  was  capable.  She  at  once  professed  her  readi- 
ness to  abdicate  in  favor  of  her  rightful  queen,  who,  with 
a  grave  and  majestic  air,  demanded  in  what  way  the 
young  lady  she  had  just  seen  had  merited  the  punish- 
ment about  to  have  been  inflicted,  and  how  long  it  had 
become  customary  to  solemnize  a  cruel  death  by  feasts 
and  rejoicings.  Dwarfina  made  a  very  clumsy  excuse,  to 
which  the  queen  was  impatiently  listening,  when  Orontes 
interrupted  her,  saying: 

"May  it  please  your  majesty,  the  princess  was  about  to 
be  punished  for  being  too  lovely;  the  princess,  my  sister, 
has  likewise  suffered  much  for  the  same  cause.  Behold 
both  the  culprits  and  judge  how  guilty  they  are  from 
their  looks."  Then  Orontes  requested  Euryanthe  to 
pull  off  her  ring,  which  done,  she  immediately  became 
visible,  her  beauty  charming  all  beholders.  "They  are, 
as  you  see,  beautiful,"  pursued  Orontes,  "and  they  are 
also  possessed  of  a  thousand  amiable  qualities  which 
they  do  not  derive  from  the  fairies;  these  are  their  only 
crimes;  for  these  have  they  been  so  cruelly  persecuted." 
Then,  turning  to  Dwarfina,  Orontes  added:  "How  unjust 
have  you  been,  madam,  to  abuse  with  a  tyrannical  power 
all  beauty  and  virtue  which  do  not  emanate  from  yourself!" 

The  prince  was  silent.  The  queen  turned  to  the  as- 
sembly with  a  lively  air  and  said:  "I  demand  the  guardian- 
ship of  these  three  persons,  for  I  feel  inclined  to  make 
them  happy.  I  am  under  the  deepest  obligations  to 
Fairer,  and  I  am  sure  you  will  allow  that  the  Queen  of 
the  Fairies  should  never  prove  ungrateful. 

"You  shall  still  reign,  madam,"  pursued  the  queen, 
turning  to  Dwarfina;  "this  empire  is  large  enough  for 
both  of  us.  To  you  belongs  the  sovereignty  of  the 
islands  in  which  you  were  born,  and  your  right  shall 
never  be  questioned  by  me.  But  leave  with  me  your 
son,  who  is  a  party  in  my  plan  of  happiness  for  these  mor- 
tals, and  whom  I  destine  to  marry  Fairer  than  a  Fairy: 
this  union  will  reconcile  us  all." 

Dwarfina  was  provoked  by  the  queen's  commands,  but 
what  could  she  do?  She  was  the  weaker  party,  and  had 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  57 

only  to  obey.  She  was  consenting  to  this  proposition 
with  a  very  bad  grace,  when  the  handsome  Pyrrho  made 
his  appearance,  followed  by  a  crowd  of  noble  youths  who 
composed  his  court.  He  had  come  to  pay  his  respects  to 
the  queen,  and  to  congratulate  her  on  her  return;  but, 
perceiving  Fairer  as  he  passed  along,  he  showed  by  his 
tender  looks  that  his  first  homage  was  paid  to  her. 

The  queen,  embracing  Pyrrho,  presented  him  to  Fairer 
than  a  Fairy,  entreating  her  to  receive  him  from  her 
hands.  The  prince's  transports  may  be  more  easily 
imagined  than  described.  Fairer,  in  her  joy,  did  not  for- 
get her  parents  or  the  good  governess  from  whose  care 
she  had  been  snatched  by  the  wiles  of  the  artful  Dwar- 
fina.  She  expressed  a  wish,  therefore,  that  they  might 
approve  of  her  -choice,  and  be  present  at  her  wedding. 
In  a  moment  the  queen  transported  the  four  lovers,  her- 
self and  court,  to  the  castle,  where  they  found  the  king 
and  queen  still  in  the  deepest  distress  at  the  supposed 
loss  of  their  favorite  daughter  and  of  Orontes,  who  had 
left  them  in  search  of  his  sister.  Delighted  at  beholding 
their  children  once  more,  they  were  scarcely  less  so  at 
perceiving  them  accompanied  by  persons  so  worthy  of 
their  choice  as  Euryanthe  and  Pyrrho,  and  immediately 
consented  to  their  union,  thanking  the  Queen  of  the 
Fairies  for  her  favor  and  protection. 

The  two  marriages  were  solemnized  on  one  day;  and 
they  were  go  happy  in  their  results  that  it  has  been  said 
that  Pyrrho  and  Fairer,  Orontes  and  Euryanthe,  are  the 
only  two  couples  who  ever  really  deserved  the  title  of 
"the  happy,"  and  that  those  who  have  been  since  cited 
as  having  gained  it  led  the  lives  of  dogs  and  cats  in  com- 
parison. 


THE  THEEE   SOLDIERS  AND  THE 
DWARF. 

THERE  were  once  three  poor  soldiers,  who,  after  hav- 
ing fought  hard  in  the  wars,  set  out  on  their  road  home, 
begging  their  way  as  they  went. 

They  had  journeyed  on  a  long  way,  sick  at  heart  with 
their  bad  luck  at  thus  being  turned  loose  on  the  world  in 


58  OLD.  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

their  old  days,  when  one  evening  they  reached  a  deep 
gloomy  wood,  through  which  they  must  pass;  night  came 
fast  upon  them,  and  they  found  that  they  must,  however 
unwillingly,  sleep  in  the  wood;  so  to  make  all  as  safe  as 
they  could,  it  was  agreed  that  two  should  lie  down  and 
sleep,  while  a  third  sat  up  and  watched,  lest  wild  beasts 
should  break  in  and  tear  them  to  pieces;  when  he  was 
tired  he  was  to  wake  one  of  the  others  and  sleep  in  his 
turn,  and  so  on  with  the  third,  so  as  to  share  the  work 
fairly  among  them. 

The  two  who  were  to  rest  first  soon  lay  down  and  fell 
fast  asleep,  and  the  other  made  himself  a  good  fire  under 
the  trees  and  sat  down  by  the  side  to  keep  watch.  He 
had  not  sat  long  before,  ail  on  a  sudden,  up  came  a  little 
man  in  a  red  jacket. 

"Who's  there?"  said  he. 

"A  friend,"  said  the  soldier. 

"What  sort  of  friend?" 

"An  old  broken  soldier,"  said  the  other,  "with  his  two 
comrades,  who  have  hardly  anything  left  to  live  on; 
come,  sit  down  and  warm  yourself,  and  partake  of  what 
we  have." 

"Well,  my  worthy  fellow,"  said  the  little  man,  "I  will 
do  what  I  can  for  you;  take  this  and  show  it  to  your 
comrades  in  the  morning." 

So  he  took  out  an  old  cloak  and  gave  it  to  the  soldier, 
telling  him  that,  whenever  he  put  it  over  his  shoulders, 
anything  he  wished  for  would  be  fulfilled;  then  the  little 
man  made  a  bow,  and  walked  away. 

The  second  soldier's  turn  to  watch  now  came,  and  the 
first  soon  laid  himself  down  to  sleep;  but  the  second  man 
had  not  sat  by  himself  long  before  up  came  the  little  man 
in  the  red  jacket  again.  The  soldier  treated  him  in  a 
friendly  way,  as  his  comrade  had  done,  and  the  little 
man  gave  him  a  purse,  which  he  told  him  was  always  full 
of  gold,  let  him  draw  as  much  as  he  would. 

Then  the  third  soldier's  turn  to  watch  came,  and  he 
also  had  the  little  man  for  his  guest,  who  gave  him  a 
wonderful  horn  that  would  draw  crowds  around  it  when- 
ever it  was  played;  and  make  every  one  forget  his  busi- 
ness to  come  and  dance  to  its  beautiful  music. 

In  the  morning  each  told  his  story  and  showed  his 
treasure;  and,  as  they  all  liked  each  other  very  much  and 


OLD,  OLD  FAIR7  TALES,  59 

were  old  friends,  they  agreed  to  travel  together  to  see 
the  world  and  for  awhile  only  to  make  use  of  the  wonder- 
ful purse.  And  thus  they  spent  their  time  very  joyously, 
till  at  last  they  began  to  be  tired  of  this  roving  life,  and 
thought  they  should  like  to  have  a  home  of  their  own. 
So  the  first  soldier  put  his  old  cloak  on  and  wished  for  a 
castle.  In  a  moment  it  stood  before  their  eyes;  fine  gar- 
dens and  green  lawns  spread  round  it,  and  flocks  of  sheep 
and  goats  and  herds  of  oxen  were  grazing  about;  and  out 


of  the  gate  came  a  fine  coach  with  three  aapple-gray 
horses  to  meet  them  and  bring  them  home. 

All  this  was  very  well  for  a  time;  but  being  old  soldiers, 
they  could  not  stay  at  home  always,  so  they  got  together 
all  their  rich  clothes  and  horses,  and  servants,  and 
ordered  their  coach  with  three  horses,  and  set  out  on  a 
journey  to  see  a  neighboring  king.  Now  this  king  had 
an  only  daughter,  and  as  he  took  the  three  soldiers  for 
kings'  sons,  he  gave  them  a  kind  welcome.  One  day,  as 
the  second  soldier  was  walking  with  the  princess,  she  saw 
him  with  the  wonderful  purse  in  his  hand;  and  having 
asked  him  what  it  was,  he  was  foolish  enough  to  tell  her: 
though,  indeed,  it  did  not  much  signify,  for  she  was  a 
witch  and  knew  all  the  wonderful  things  that  the  three 
soldiers  brought.  Now  this  princess  was  very  cunning 
and  artful;  so  she  set  to  work  and  made  a  purse  so  like 
the  soldier's  that  no  one  would  know  one  from  the  other, 
and  then  asked  him  to  come  and  see  her,  and  made  him 


60  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

drink  some  wine  that  she  had  got  ready  for  him,  till  he 
fell  fast  asleep.  Then  she  felt  in  his  pocket,  and  took 
away  the  wonderful  purse,  and  left  the  one  she  had  made 
in  its  place. 

The  next  morning  the  soldiers  set  out  home,  and  soon 
after  they  reached  their  castle,  happening  to  want  some 
money,  they  went  to  their  purse  for  it,  and  found  some- 
thing indeed  in  it;  but  to  their  great  sorrow,  when  they 
had  emptied  it,  none  came  in  the  place  of  what  they 
took.  Then  the  cheat  was  soon  found  out;  for  the  sec- 
ond soldier  knew  where  he  had  been,  and  how  he  had 
told  the  story  to  the  princess,  and  he  guessed  that  she 
had  betrayed  him. 

"Alas!"  cried  he,  "poor  wretches  that  we  are,  what 
shall  we  do?" 

"Oh!"  said  the  first  soldier,  "let  no  gray  hairs  grow 
for  this  mishap;  I  will  soon  get  the  purse  back." 

So  he  threw  his  cloak  across  his  shoulders  and  wished 
himself  in  the  princess'  chamber.  There  he  found  her 
sitting  alone,  telling  the  gold  that  fell  around  her  in  a 
shower  from  the  purse.  But  the  soldier  stood  looking  at 
her  too  long,  for  the  moment  she  saw  him  she  started  up 
and  cried  with  all  her  force,  "Thieves!  thieves!"  so  that 
the  whole  court  came  running  in  and  tried  to  seize  him. 
The  poor  soldier  now  began  to  be  dreadfully  frightened 
in  his  turn,  and  thought  it  was  high  time  to  make  the 
best  of  his  way  off;  so  without  thinking  of  the  ready  way 
of  traveling  that  his  cloak  gave  him,  he  ran  to  the  win- 
dow, opened  it,  and  jumped  out;  and  unluckily  in  his 
haste  his  cloak  caught  and  was  left  hanging,  to  the  great 
joy  of  the  princess,  who  knew  its  worth. 

The  poor  soldier  made  the  best  of  his  way  home  to  his 
comrades,  on  foot  and  in  a  very  downcast  mood;  but  the 
third  soldier  told  him  to  keep  up  his  heart,  and  he  took 
his  horn  and  blew  a  merry  tune.  At  the  first  blast  a 
countless  troop  of  foot  and  horse  came  rushing  to  their 
aid,  and  they  set  out  to  make  war  against  their  enemy. 
Then  the  king's  palace  was  besieged,  and  he  was  told 
that  he  must  give  up  the  purse  and  the  cloak,  Or  that 
not  one  stone  should  be  left  upon  another.  And  the 
king  went  into  his  daughter's  chamber  and  talked  with 
her;  but  she  said,  "Let  me  try  first  if  I  cannot  beat  them 
some  way."  So  she  thought  of  a  cunning  scheme  to 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  61 

overreach  them,  and  dressed  herself  out  as  a  poor  girl 
with  a  basket  on  her  arm;  she  then  set  out  by  night  with 
her  maid,  and  went  into  the  enemy's  camp  as  if  she 
wanted  to  sell  trinkets. 

In  the  morning  she  began  to  ramble  about,  singing 
ballads  so  beautifully  that  all  the  tents  were  left  empty, 
and  the  soldiers  ran  round  in  crowds  and  thought  of 
nothing  but  hearing  her  sing.  Among  the  rest  came  the 
soldier  to  whom  the  horn  belonged,  and  as  soon  as  she 
saw  him  she  winked  to  her  maid,  who  slipped  slyly 
through  the  crowd  and  went  into  his  tent  where  it  hung, 
and  stole  it  away.  This  done,  they  both  got  safely  back 
to  the  palace;  the  besieging  army  went  away;  the  three 
wonderful  gifts  were  all  left  in  the  hands  of  the  princess; 
and  the  three  soldiers  were  as  penniless  and  forlorn  as 
when  the  little  man  found  them  in  the  wood. 
-'_  Poor  fellows!  they  began  to  think  what  was  now  to  be 
done.  "Comrades,"  at  last  said  the  second  soldier,  who 
had  had  the  purse,  "we  had  better  part;  we  cannot  live 
together;  let  each  seek  his  bread  as  well  as  he  can."  So 
he  turned  to  the  right,  and  the  other  two  to  the  left;  for 
they  said  they  would  rather  travel  together.  Then  on 
he  strayed  till  he  came  to  a  wood  (now  this  was  the  same 
wood  where  they  had  met  with  so  much  good  luck  be- 
fore); and  he  walked  on  a  long  time  till  evening  began  to' 
fall,  when  he  sat  down  tired  beneath  a  tree,  and  soon  fell 
asleep. 

Morning  dawned,  and  he  was  greatly  delighted,  on 

opening  his  eyes,  to  see  that  the  tree  was  laden  with  the 

most  beautiful  apples.     He  was  hungry  enough,  so  he 

soon  plucked  and  ate  first  one,  then  a  second,  then  a 

third  apple.     A  strange  feeling  came  over  his  nose:  when 

he  put  the  apple  to  his  mouth  something  was  in  the  way; 

he  felt  it:  it  was  his  nose,  that  grew  and  grew  till  it  hung 

down  before  him.     It  did  not  stop  there,  but  still  it  grew 

and  grew.     "Mercy!"  thought  he,  "when  will  it  have 

done  growing?"     And,    indeed,    it    had    by  this  time 

|    reached  the  ground  as  he  sat  on  the  grass,  and  thus  it 

i    kept  creeping  on  till  he  could  not  bear  its  weight,  or 

!  _  raise  himself  up;  and  it  seemed  as  if  it  would  never  end, 

1    for  already  it  stretched  its  enormous  length  all  through 

i    the  wood. 

Meantime  his  comrades  were  journejing  on,  till  on  a 


62  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

sudden  one  of  them  stumbled  against  something.  "What 
can  that  be?"  said  the  other.  They  looked,  and  could 
think  of  nothing  that  it  was  like  but  a  nose.  "We  will 
follow  it  and  find  its  owner,  however,"  said  they;  so  they 
traced  it  up,  till  at  last  they  found  their  poor  comrade 
lying  stretched  along  under  the  apple-tree.  What  was  to 
be  done?  They  tried  to  carry  him,  but  in  vain.  They 
caught  an  ass  that  was  passing  by,  and  raised  him  upon 
its  back;  but  it  was  soon  tired  of  carrying  such  a  load. 
So  they  sat  down  in  despair,  when  up  came  the  little 
man  in  the  red  jacket. 

"Why,  how  now,  friend?"  said  he,  laughing;  "well,  I 
must  find  a  cure  for  you,  I  see."    So  he  told  them  to 


gather  a  pear  from  a  tree  that  grew  close  by,  and  the 
nose  would  come  right  again.  No  time  was  lost,  and  the 
nose  was  soon  brought  to  its  proper  size,  to  the  poor  sol- 
dier's joy. 

"I  will  do  something  more  for  you  yet,"  said  the  little 
man;  "take  some  of  those  pears  and  apples  with  you; 
whoever  eats  one  of  the  apples  will  have  his  nose  grow 
like  yours  just  now;  but  if  you  give  him  a  pear  all  will 
come  ^<^~t  again.  Go  to  the  princess  and  get  her  .to  eat 
some  of  your  apples;  her  nose  will  grow  twenty  times  as 
long  as  yours  did;  then  look  sharp,  and  you  will  get  what 
you  want  of  her." 

Then  they  thanked  their  old  friend  very  heartily  for 
all  his  kindness,  and  it  was  agreed  that  the  poor  soldier 
who  had  already  tried  the  power  of  the  apple  should 


OLD.  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  63 

undertake  the  task.  So  he  dressed  himself  up  as  a  gar- 
dener's boy,  and  went  to  the  king's  palace,  and  said  he 
had  apples  to  sell,  such  as  were  never  seen  ihere  before. 
Every  one  that  saw  them  was  delighted  and  wanted  to 
taste,  but  he  said  they  were  only  for  the  princess;  and 
she  soon  sent  her  maid  to  buy  his  stock.  They  were  so 
ripe  and  rosy  that  she  soon  began  eating,  and  had  already 
eaten  three  when  she  too  began  to  wonder  what  ailed  her 
nose,  for  it  grew  and  grew,  down  to  the  ground,  out  at 
the  window,  and  over  the  garden,  nobody  knows  where. 

Then  the  king  made  known  to  all  his  kingdom,  that 
whoever  would  heal  her  of  this  dreadful  disease  should 
be  richly  rewarded.  Many  tried,  but  the  princess  got  no 
relief.  And  now  the  old  soldier  dressed  himself  up  very 
sprucely  as  a  doctor,  who  said  he  could  cure  her;  so  he 
chopped  up  some  of  the  apple,  and  to  punish  her  a  little 
more  gave  her  a  dose,  saying  he  would  call  to-morrow 
and  see  her  again.  The  morrow  came,  and  of  course,  in- 
stead of  being  better,  the  nose  had  been  growing  all 
night,  and  the  poor  princess  was  in  a  dreadful  fright.  So 
the  doctor  chopped  up  a  very  little  of  the  pear  and  gave 
her,  and  said  he  was  sure  that  would  do  good,  and  he 
would  call  again  the  next  day.  Next  day  came,  and  the 
nose  was  to  be  sure  a  little  smaller,  but  yet  it  was  bigger 
than  it  was  when  the  doctor  first  began  to  meddle  with  it. 

Then  he  thought  to  himself,  "I  must  frighten  this 
cunning  princess  a  little  more  before  I  shall  get  what  I 
want  of  her;"  so  he  gave  her  another  dose  of  the  apple, 
and  said  he  would  call  on  the  morrow.  The  morrow 
came,  and  the  nose  was  ten  times  as  bad  as  before.  "My 
good  lady,"  said  the  doctor,  "something  works  against 
my  medicine,  and  is  too  strong  for  it;  but  I  know  by  the 
force  of  my  art  what  it  is;  you  have  stolen  goods  about 
you,  and  if  you  do  not  give  them  back,  I  can  do  nothing 
for  you."  But  the  princess  denied  very  stoutly  that  she 
had  anything  of  the  kind.  "Very  well,"  said  the  doctor, 
"you  may  do  as  you  please,  but  I  am  sure  r  ^  right, 
and  you  will  never  be  cured  if  you  do  not  own  it."  Then 
he  went  to  the  king,  and  told  him  how  the  matter  stood. 

"Daughter,"  said  he,  "send  back  the  cloak,  the  purse, 
and  the  horn,  that  you  stole  from  the  right  owners." 

Then  she  ordered  her  maid  to  fetch  all  three,  and  gave 
them  to  the  doctor,  and  begged  him  to  give  them  back  to 


64  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

the  soldiers;  and  the  moment  he  had  them  safe  he  gave 
her  a  whole  pear  to  eat,  and  the  nose  came  right.  And 
as  for  the  doctor,  he  put  on  the  cloak,  wished  the  king 
and  all  his  court  a  good-day,  and  was  soon  with  his  two 
brothers,  who  lived  from  that  time  happily  at  home  in 
their  palace,  except  when  they  took  airings  in  their  coach 
with  the  three  dapple-gray  horses. 


THE  GIANT  WITH  THE  GOLDEN  HAIES. 

THERE  was  once  a  poor  man  and  his  wife,  and  they  had 
a  son,  of  whom  it  was  foretold  that  he  should  prosper  in 
all  that  he  undertook,  and  that  he  should  one  day  marry 
the  king's  daughter.  The  king  heard  of  this;  and  when 
he  found  the  parents  of  the  boy  were  so  poor,  he  was 
very  ill-pleased,  and  determined"  that  he  should  never 
marry  his  daughter.  So  he  went,  disguised  as  a  stranger, 
to  the  parents,  and  asked  them  whether  they  would  sell 
him  their  son. 

"No,"  said  they;  but  as  he  begged  very  hard,  and  said 
he  would  give  a  great  deal  of  money  for  the  child,  and 
would  take  great  care  of  him,  and  as  they  had  scarcely 
bread  to  eat,  they  at  last  agreed,  thinking  to  themselves, 
"He  is  a  lucky  child;  no  harm  will  happen  to  him." 

The  king  took  the  child,  put  it  into  a  box,  and  rode 
away;  but  when  he  came  to  a  deep  stream  he  threw  it 
into  the  water,  saying  to  himself,  "My  daughter  shall 
never  have  you  for  a  husband."  So  the  box  floated  down 
the  stream,  but  no  water  reached  the  child;  till  at  last, 
about  two  miles  from  the  king's  capital,  it  stopped  at  a 
mill-dam.  The  miller  soon  saw  it,  and  took  a  long  pole, 
and  drew  it  toward  the  shore,  and  finding  it  heavy, 
thought  it  was  full  of  money;  but  when  he  opened  it  he 
found  a  pretty  little  boy.  Now  the  miller  and  his  wife 
had  no  children,  and  they  rejoiced  to  see  the  foundling, 
saying:  "Heaven  has  sent  it  to  us;"  so  they  treated  the 
boy  very  kindly,  and  brought  him  up  carefully  in  virtu- 
ous principles. 

About  thirteen  years  afterward  the  king  came  by 
chance  to  the  mill,  and  asked  the  miller  if  that  was  his 
son. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  65 

'  said  he;  "I  found  him,  when  a  babe,  in  a  box 
in  the  mill-dam." 

"How  long  ago?"  asked  the  king. 

"About  thirteen  years,"  said  the  miller. 

"Indeed!"  said  the  king.  "Can  you  spare  him  to 
carry  a  letter  to  the  queen  ?  It  will  give  me  much  pleasure, 
and  I  will  present  him  with  two  gold  pieces  for  his 
trouble." 

"As  your  majesty  pleases,"  said  the  miller. 

Now  the  king  had  soon  guessed  that  this  was  the  child 


whom  he  had  tried  to  drown;  and  he  wrote  a  letter  by 
him  to  the  queen,  saying:  "As  soon  as  the  bearer  of  this 
letter  reaches  you,  give  orders  to  kill  and  bury  him,  so 
that  all  may  be^over  before  I  return." 

•The  young  man  set  out  with  this  letter,  but  missed  his 
way,  and  camo  in  the  evening  to  a  great  wood.  Though 
it  was  quite  dark  he  saw  a  light  afar  off,  to  which  he  di- 
rected his  steps,  and  found  that  it  came  from  a  little, 
cottage.  There  was  no*  one  within  except  an  old  woman, 


66  OLD,  OLD  FAIR7  TALES. 

who  was  alarmed  at  seeing  him  and  said:  ""What  brings 
you  here,  and  where  are  you  going?" 

"I  am  going  to  the  queen,  to  whom  1  am  taking  a  let- 
ter; but  I  have  lost  my  way,  and  shall  be  glad  if  you  will 
give  me  a  night's  rest." 

"You  are  very  unlucky,"  said  she,  "for  this  is  a  rob- 
bers' hut;  and  if  the  band  come  back  while  you  are  here, 
they  will  murder  you." 

"I  am  so  tired,  however,"  replied  he,  "that  I  can  go  no 
further;"  so  he  laid  the  letter  on  the  table,  stretched 
himself  out  upon  a  bench,  and  fell  asleep. 

When  the  robbers  came  home  and  saw  him  they  asked 
the  old  woman  who  the  strange  lad  was. 

"I  have  given  him  shelter  for  charity,"  said  she;  "he 
has  a  letter  to  carry  to  the  queen,  and  has  lost  his  way." 

The  robbers  took  up  the  letter,  broke  it  open,  and  read 
the  orders  contained  in  it  to  murder  the  bearer.  Then 
their  leader  tore  it,  and,  thinking  to  play  the  king  a 
trick,  wrote  another  letter,  desiring  the  queen,  as  soon  as 
the  young  man  reached  her,  to  marry  him  to  the  king's 
daughter.  Meantime  they  let  him  sleep  on  till  morning, 
and  then  showed  him  the  right  way  to  the  queen's  palace; 
who,  as  soon  as  she  had  read  the  letter,  made  all  ready 
for  the  wedding;  and  as  the  young  man  was  very  hand- 
some, the  princess  took  him  willingly  for  her  husband, 
and  they  lived  happily  together. 

After  awhile  the  king  came  back;  and  when  he  saw  the 
prediction  fulfilled,  and  that  this  child  of  fortune  was 
married  to  his  daughter,  he  asked  eagerly  how  this  had 
happened,  and  what  his  letter  had  said. 

"Dear  husband,"  said  the  queen,  "here  is  your  letter, 
read  it  for  yourself." 

The  king  took  it,  and  seeing  that  another  letter  had 
been  sent  instead  of  his,  asked  his  son-in-law  what  he  had 
done  with  the  letter  which  he  had  given  into  his  charge. 

"I  know  nothing  of  it,"  said  he;  "it  must  have  been 
taken  away  in  the  night  while  I  slept." 

Then  the  king  was  in  a  great  rage  and  said:  "No  man 
shall  have  my  daughter  who  does  not  go  down  and  bring 
me  three  golden  hairs  from  the  head  of  the  giant  who 
reigns  in  the  wonderful  mountain;  do  this,  and  you  shall 
have  my  daughter." 

"That  I  will  soon  do,"  said  the  lucky  youth:  so  he 
took  leave  of  his  wife,  and  set  out  on  his  journey. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  6? 

By  and  by  our  hero  came  to  a  great  city,  where  the 
guard  of  the  gate  stopped  him,  and  asked  what  trade  he 
followed,  and  what  he  knew. 

"I  know  everything,"  said  he. 

"If  that  be  so,"  replied  they,  "be  so  good  as  to  tell  us 
why  our  fountain  in  the  market-place,  that  used  to  flow 
with  wine,  will  now  not  even  give  water?  tell  us  this,  and 
we  will  give  you  two  asses  laden  with  gold." 

"With  all  my  heart,"  said  he,  "when  I  come  back." 

He  then  continued  his  journey  and  came  to  another 
city,  and  there  the  guard  also  asked  him  what  trade  he 
followed,  and  what  he  understood. 

"I  know  everything,"  answered  he. 

"Then  pray  oblige  us  by  saying  how  it  happens  that 
a  tree  which  used  to  bear  golden  apples  does  not  now  even 
bear  a  leaf?" 

"Most  willingly,"  said  he,  "when  I  return." 

His  way  next  led  him  to  the  side  of  a  great  lake,  over 
which  he  must  pass.  The  ferryman  asked,  as  the  others 
had  done,  what  was  his  trade,  and  what  he  knew. 

"Everything,"  said  he. 

"Then,"  said  the  other,  "pray  tell  me  why  it  is  that  I 
am  bound  forever  to  ferry  people  over  this  water,  and 
cannot  get  free?  I  will  reward  you  handsomely." 

"I  will  tell  you  all  about  it,"  said  the  young  man,  "as 
I  come  home." 

When  he  had  passed  the  water  he  came  to  the  great 
mountain,  which  looked  very  black  and  gloomy.  The 
giant  lived  in  a  cave  hollowed  out  of  the  solid  rock. 
When  the  youth  knocked  at  the  door  he  found  the  giant 
was  not  at  home,  but  his  grandmother  was  sitting  in  her 
easy-chair. 

"What  do  you  seek?"  said  she  to  the  prince. 

"Three  golden  hairs  from  the  giant's  head,"  answered 
he;  "otherwise  I  shall  lose  my  wife." 

"I  am  sorry  for  you, "said  she;  "when  he  returns  home 
I  am  afraid  he  will  kill  you;  yet  I  will  try  what  Jean  do." 

Then  she  showed  him  a  hole  in  the  wall,  and  told  him 
to  hide  himself  there;  and  if  he  kept  himself  quite 
quiet,  he  might  be  safe. 

"Very  well,"  said  he;  "but  I  want  also  to  know  why  a 
fountain  that  used  to  flow  with  wine  is  now  dry;  why  the 
tree  that  bore  golden  apples  is  now  Jeafless;  and  why  it 
is  that  the  ferryman  cannot  get  away." 


68  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

"You  ask  three  questions  that  are  difficult  to  answer," 
said  the  old  lady;  "but  lie  quiet  and  listen  to  what  the 
giant  says  when  I  pull  the  golden  hairs." 

As  soon  as  night  set  in  the  giant  himself  appeared. 
When  he  entered  he  began  to  snuff  up  the  air,  and  cried: 
"What's  the  matter  here?  surely  some  stranger  is  in  my 
cave." 

Then  he  searched  all  round  in  vain;  and  the  old  dame 
scolded  and  said:  "Don't  be  turning  everything  topsy- 
turvy that  I  have  just  set  in  order." 

Upon  this  he  took  his  supper,  kid  his  head  in  her  lap, 
and  soon  fell  asleep,  as  he  was  very  tired.  As  soon  as  he 
began  to  snore  she  seized  one  of  the  golden  hairs  and 
pulled  it  out. 

"Woman!"  cried  he,  starting  up,  "what  are  you 
about?" 

"Oh,  I  have  heard  that  the  fountain  in  the  market- 
place that  used  to  run  with  wine  has  become  dry;  what 
can  be  the  reason?" 

"Ah!  if  they  but  knew  that,"  said  the  giant:  "under 
a  stone  in  the  fountain  sits  a  toad;  when  they  kill  him 
it  will  flow  again." 

This  said,  he  fell  asleep,  and  snored  so  loud  that  the 
window  shook,  and  then  the  old  lady  pulled  out  another 
hair. 

"What  would  you  be  at?"  cried  he  in  a  rage. 

"Don't  be  angry,"  said  she;  "I  want  to  ask  you  another 
question." 

"What  is  that?"  said  he. 

"Oh!  in  a  great  kingdom  there  was  a  fruit-tree  that 
used  to  bear  golden  apples,  and  now  it  has  not  even  a 
leaf  upon  it;  what  is  the  reason  of  that?" 

"Aha!"  said  the  giant,  "they  would  like  very  well  to' 
know  that  secret.  At  the  root  of  the  tree  a  mouse  is 
gnawing;  if  they  were  to  kill  him  the  tree  would  bear 
golden  apples  again;  if  not,  it  will  soon  die.  Now  have 
done  with  your  questions,  and  let  me  sleep  in  peace;  if 
you  wake  me  again  I  shall  box  your  ears." 

Then  he  fell  once  more  asleep;  and  when  she  heard  him 
snore  she  pulled  out  the  third  golden  hair,  and  the  giant 
jumped  up  and  was  going  to  make  sad  work;  but  she 
soothed  him,  and  said,  "Only  this  once,  and  I  will  never 
trouble  you  again.  There  is  a  ferryman  who  is  doomed 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  69 

to  ply  backward  and  forward  over  a  lake,  and  can  never 
be  set  free;  what  is  the  charm  that  binds  him?" 

"He  is  a  silly  fool!"  said  the  giant.  "Let  him  give 
the  rudder  into  the  hand  of  the  first  passenger;  he  will 
then  be  free  and  the  other  will  take  his  place.  Now  let 
me  sleep." 

In  the  morning  the  giant  arose  and  went  out,  and  the 
old  woman,  having  released  the  young  man  from  his 
prison,  gave  him  the  three  golden  hairs,  asked  him  if  he 


had  heard  and  understood  all  that  the  giant  had  said, 
and,  on  his  replying  that  he  had,  she  sent  him  on  his 
way. 

He  now  left  the  mountain  and  soon  came  to  the  ferry- 
man, who  knew  him  again,  and  asked  for  the  answer 
which  he  had  said  he  would  give  him. 

"Ferry  me  over  first,"  "said  he,  and  then  I  will  tell 
you." 

When  the  boat  reached  the  other  side  he  told  him  to 
give  the  rudder  to  the  first  passenger  and  then  run  away. 

He  came  next  to  the  city  where  the  barren  tree  stood. 
"Kill  the  mouse,"  said  he  to  the  watchman,  "that  gnaws 
the  root,  and  you  will  have  golden^apples  again."  They 


70  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

gave  him  two  ass-loads  of  gold;  and  he  journeyed  on  to 
the  city  where  the  fountain  had  dried  up,  and  the  guard 
asked  his  answer  to  their  question.  So  he  told  them  to 
kill  the  toad;  and  they  thanked  him,  and  gave  him  also 
two  a§ses  laden  with  gold. 

And  now  at  last  the  youth  reached  home,  and  his  wife 
rejoiced  exceedingly  to  see  him,  and  to  hear  of  his  good 
fortune.  He  gave  the  three  golden  hairs  to  the  king, 
who  could  no  longer  raise  any  objection  to  him;  and 
when  he  saw  the  four  asses  laden  with  gold,  cried  out  in 
a  transport  of  joy  (for  he  was  very  fond  of  money):  "Dear 
son-in-law,  where  did  you  find  all  this  gold?" 

"Beyond  a  lake,"  said  the  youth,  "where,  no  doubt, 
there  is  still  plenty  to  be  had." 

"Pray  tell  me,"  said  the  king  quite  anxiously,  "may  I 
go  and  get  some  too?" 

"As  much  as  you  please, "replied  the  other;  "you  will 
see  the  ferryman  on  the  lake;  tell  him  to  carry  you 
across,  and  you  will  soon  arrive  at  the  cities  whence  the 
gold  came." 

Away  went  the  greedy  old  king  with  all  speed;  and 
when  he  came  to  the  lake  he  beckoned  to  the  ferryman, 
who  took  him  into  his  boat;  and  when  he  was  about  to 
fjuit,  he  put  the  rudder  into  his  hand  and  ran  off,  leav- 
ing the  old  king  to  ferry  away  as  a  punishment. 

"And  is  his  majesty  plying  there  still?" 

No  doubt  of  it;  for  who,  do  you  think,  would  take  the 
rudder  out  of  his  hands? 


BLUE  BEARD. 

THERE  was  in  former  times  a  very  rich  gentleman.  He 
had  fine  town  and  country  houses;  his  dishes  and  plates 
were  all  of  gold  or  silver;  his  rooms  were  hung  with  em- 
broidered tapestry;  his  chairs  and  sofas  were  covered 
with  the  finest  damask,  and  his  carriages  were  all  gilt  in 
a  grand  style.  But,  unfortunately,  this  gentleman  had  a 
blue  beard,  which  made  him  so  very  ugly  and  frightful 
that  none  of  the  ladies  in  the  parts  where  he  lived  would 
venture  to  go  into  his  company. 

Now  a  certain  lady  of  rank,  who  lived  very  near  him, 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  71 

had  two  daughters,  both  eminently  beautiful.  Blue  Beard 
asked  her  to  bestow  one  of  them  upon  him  for  his  wife, 
leaving  it  to  herself  to  choose  which  of  the  two  it  should 
be.  Both  the  young  ladies  said  over  and  over  again 
that  they  would  never  marry  a  man  with  a  blue  beard; 
yet,  in  order  to  be  as  civil  as  they  could,  each  of  them 
said  that  she  only  objected  to  him  because  she  was  loath 
to  hinder  her  sister  from  such  an  honorable  match.  The 
truth  of  the  matter  was,  besides  the  circumstance  of  his 
blue  beard,  they  knew  that  he  had  already  married  sev- 
eral wives,  and  nobody  could  tell  what  had  ever  become 
of  any  oj  them. 

Blue  Beard,  in  order  to  gain  their  favor,  asked  the  lady 
and  her  daughters,  with  some  of  their  friends  and  ac- 
quaintances, to  accompany  him  to  one  of  his  country 
villas;  the  invitation  was  accepted,  and  a  whole  week 
was  passed  in  nothing  but  parties  for  hunting  and  fish- 
ing, music,  dancing,  feasts,  and  picnic  excursions;  no 
one  ever  thought  of  going  to  bed,  and  the  nights  were 
spent  in  merry-makings  of  all  kinds.  In  short,  the  time 
rolled  on  in  so  much  pleasure  that  the  youngest  of  the 
two  sisters  began  to  think  that  the  beard  was  not  so  very 
blue,  and  that  the  gentleman  who  owned  it  was  a  very 
civil  and  obliging  person.  Shortly  after  their  return 
home  the  marriage  was  celebrated. 

About  a  month  after  the  wedding  BJue  Beard  told  his 
wife  that  he  was  obliged  to  leave  her  for  six  weeks  at 
least,  as  he  had  some  business  of  importance  to  transact 
in  the  country.  He  desired  her  to  be  sure  to  indulge 
herself  in  every  kind  of  pleasure  during  his  absence;  to 
invite  as  many  of  her  friends  as  she  liked,  to  take  them 
into  the' country  if  she  chose,  and  to  treat  them  with  all 
sorts  of  dainties. 

"Here,"  said  he,  "are  the  keys  of  the  two  large  store- 
rooms; this  is  the  key  of  the  great  box  that  contains  the 
best  gold  and  silver  plate,  which  we  use  only  for  com' 
.  pany;  this  unlocks  the  strong  box  in  which  I  keep  my 
money,  and  this  is  the  key  of  my  diamond  and  jewel 
caskets.  Here  also  is  the  master  key  to  all  the  rooms  in 
the  house;  as  for  this  little  key,  it  belongs  to  the  closet 
at  the  end  of  the  long  gallery  oji  the  ground-floor.  I 
give  you  free  leave,"  ho  continued,  "to  open  and  do  what 
you  like  with  all  the  rest;  but  this  little  closet  I  forbid 


72  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

you  to  enter,  or  even  to  put  the  key  into  the  lock,  on 
any  account  whatever.  If  you  do  not  obey  me  in  this 
particular,  but  open  the  closet  door,  I  warn  you  to  expect 
the  most  terrible  of  punishments  from  my  anger/' 

The  wife  promised  to  obey  his  orders  in  the  most 
punctual  manner,  and  Blue  Beard,  after  tenderly  em- 
bracing her  and  bidding  her  adieu,  stepped  into  his  car- 
riage and  drove  away. 

When  Blue  Beard  was  gone  the  neighbors  and  friends 
of  his  wife  did  not  wait  to  be  invited,  so  eager  was  their 
curiosity  to  behold  all  the  riches  and  rarities  that  she  had 
become  mistress  of  by  her  marriage;  for  none  of  them 
had  dared  to  go  to  the  wedding,  or  to  visit  her  since,  on 
account  of  the  bridegroom's  blue  beard,  which  inspired 
them  all  with  terror.  As  soon  as  they  arrived  they  ran 
over  Blue  Beard's  house  from  room  to  room,  from  closet 
to  closet,  from  storeroom  to  storeroom,  observing  with 
surprise  and  delight  that  each  one  they  came  to  was 
richer  and  more  splendid  than  the  one  they  had  just 
quitted.  When  they  came  to  the  suite  of  drawing- 
rooms  they  could  not  sufficiently  admire  the  costly 
grandeur  of  the  tapestry,  the  gorgeous  beds,  the  rich 
sofas,  the  rare  cabinets,  the  brilliant  chandeliers,  the 
luxurious  chairs  and  tables,  and  the  noble  mirrors;  the 
frames  of  these  last  were  of  silver  gilt,  superbly  chased, 
and  the  plates,  some  being  of  the  finest  glass  and  others 
sheets  of  burnished  silver,  reflected  the  beholder's  figure 
'from  head  to  foot.  In  a  word,  nothing  could  exceed  the 
costly  elegance  of  Blue  Beard's  furniture,  and  his  wife's 
acquaintances  failed  not  to  admire  and  envy  her  good  for- 
tune. The  wife,  meanwhile,  was  far  from  thinking  about 
the  fine  speeches  they  made  to  her,  and  was  intent  only 
upon  exploring  the  secrets  of  the  closet  on  the  ground 
floor  that  her  husband  had  so  strictly  forbidden  her  to 
open. 

At  last  her  curiosity  became  so  great  that,  without 
thinking  how  rude  it  would  be  to  leave  her  guests,  she 
slipped  away  down  a  private  staircase  that  led  to  the  gal- 
lery, and  her  haste  was  so  great  that  she  was  two  or  three 
times  in  danger  of  falling  and  breaking  her  neck.  When 
she  reached  the  closet  door  she  paused  to  reflect  a  min- 
ute or  two  on  the  order  her  husband  had  given  her,  and 
to  consider  that  her  disobedience  might  perhaps  be  at- 


On  beholding  this  terrible  sisrht  the  young  wife  dropped 
the  key  on  the  floor.-Page :  3      Old,  Old  Fairy  Tales, 


. 

',      -•  r/   _.« 

•          . 
y*   v    J't  •*        •     • 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  73 

tended  by  fatal  consequences.  But  curiosity  to  know 
what  the  closet  contained  assailed  her  so  powerfully  that 
she  was  unable  to  resist  its  impulse,  and,  resolved  to 
gratify  it  at  all  hazards,  with  a  trembling  hand  she  put 
the  little  key  into  the  lock  and  turned  it,  and  the  door 
immediately  flew  wide  open. 

The  room  being  partially  darkened  by  thick  blinds  be- 
fore the  windows,  she  could  at  first  see  nothing  distinctly; 
but  in  a  short  time,  her  eyes  growing  accustomed  to  the 
twilight,  she  perceived  that  the  floor  was  covered  with 
clotted  blood,  in  which  were  lying  the  heads  of  several 
dead  women,  parallel  with  the  walls.  These  were  Blue 
Beard's  unfortunate  former  wives,  whom  he  had  killed 
one  after  another. 

On  beholding  this  terrible  sight  the  poor  young  wife 
was  ready  to  faint  with  fear,  and,  in  her  confusion,  the 
key  of  the  closet,  which  she  had  drawn  from  the  lock, 
fell  from  her  hand  on  the  floor. 

When  she  had  a  little  recovered  from  her  fright  she 
picked  up  the  key,  locked  the  door,  and  hastened  back  to 
her  own  room,  to  prepare  to  amuse  her  company;  but 
her  agitation  was  so  great  that  her  attempts  to  quell  it 
were  vain.  Taking  notice  that  the  key  of  the  closet  had 
got  stained  with  blood  iri  falling  on  the  floor,  she  en- 
deavored to  cleanse  it  by  wiping  it  with  her  handker- 
chief; but  the  blood  was  immovable:  in  vain  she  washed 
it,  and  even  scoured  it  with  sand  and  brick-dust;  the 
blood  still  remained  on  the  key,  in  spite  of  all  her  efforts. 
Well  it  might,  for  the  key  was  a  fairy  key,  and  there  was 
no  means  of  thoroughly  cleansing  it;  as  fast  as  the  blood 
was  rubbed  off  one  side,  it  made  its  appearance  on  the 
other. 

Early  that  same  evening  Blue  Beard  returned  home, 
saying  that,  before  he  had  got  many  miles  on  his  jour- 
ney, he  had  received  letters  advising  him  that  the  affair 
he  was  about  to  attend  in  person  was  settled  to  his  ad- 
vantage without  his  presence.  His  wife  said  everything 
she  could  think  of  to  make  him  believe  she  was  trans- 
ported with  joy  at  his  sudden  return.  The  next  morning 
he  asked  her  for  the  keys;  she  gave  them  to  him,  but  her 
hand  trembled  so  violently  that  Blue  Beard  was  at  no 
loss  to  guess  all  that  had  taken  place. 

"How  is  it,"  said  he,  "that  the  key  of  the  closet  on  the 
ground  floor  is  not  here  with  the  others?" 


74  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

"I  must  have  left  it  upstairs  oil  my  dressing-table/' 
said  the  wife. 

"Do  not  fail,"  replied  Blue  Beard,  "to  return  it  to  me 
by  and  by.'7 

After  \yalking  backward  and  forward  several  times,  to 
make  believe  that  she  was  looking  for  the  key,  she  at  last 
gave  it  up  with  reluctance.  Blue  Beard,  having  taken  it 
into  his  hands  and  examined  it,  asked  his  wife,  "How 
came  this  blood  on  the  key?" 

"I  am  sure  I  do  not  know,"  answered  the  poor  terri- 
fied lady,  turning  as  pale  as  a  corpse. 

"You  do  not  know!"  returned  Blue  Beard  sternly; 
"but  I  know  well  enough.  You  have  been  into  the 
closet  on  the  ground  floor.  Very  well,  madam!  you  shall 
go  there  again,  for  your  disobedience,  and  take  your 
place  among 'the  ladies  you  saw." 

The  poor  young  lady  threw  herself  on  her  knees  before 
her  husband,  weeping  bitterly  and  displaying  all  the  signs 
of  a  true  repentance  for  having  disobeyed  him,  and  sup- 
plicated his  pardon  for  her  first  fault  in  the  most  affect- 
ing terms.  Her  beauty  and  distress  would  have  melted  a 
rock;  but  Blue  Beard's  heart  was  harder  than  a  rock. 

"No,  madam,"  said  he,  "you  must  die  this  very  min- 
ute." 

"Alas!  if  I  must  die,"  answered  she,  regarding  her  re- 
lentless husband  with  streaming  eyes,  "at  least  give  me 
a  short  time  to  say  my  prayers." 

"You  shall  have  half  a  quarter  of  an  hour,"  retorted 
the  cruel  Blue  Beard,  "but  not  a  second  more." 

When  Blue  Beard  had  left  her  to  herself,  she  called 
aloud  to  her  sister,  and  said,  "Sister  Anne"  (that  was 
her  sister's  name),  "prithee  run  up  to  the  top  of  the 
tower  and  see  if  my  brothers  are  in  sight;  they  promised 
to  visit  me  to-day.  If  you  see  them,  make  signs  to  them 
to  gallop  hither  as  fast  as  they  can." 

The  sister  immediately  ascended  to  the  battlements  of 
the  tower,  and  the  poor  trembling  lady  cried  out  to  her 
every  moment:  "Anne!  Sister  Anne!  Do  you  see  any 
one  coming?" 

"I  see  nothing,"  answered  Sister  Anne,  "but  the  sun 
which  makes  a  dust,  and  the  grass  which  looks  green." 

Blue  Beard,  in  the  meantime,  with  a  large  naked  sword 
in  his  hand,  called  out  as  loud  as  he  could  bawl:  "Come 
down  at  once,  or  I  will  fetch  jou!" 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  75 

"Grant  me  one  moment,  I  beseech  you,"  replied  his 
wife,  and  then  called  softly  to  her  sister:  "Anne!  Sister 
Anne!  do  you  see  any  one  coming?" 

"Alas!"  answered  Sister  Anne,  "I  see  nothing  but  the 
sun  which  makes  a  dust,  and  the  grass  which  looks 
green." 

"Come  down,  I  say,  this  very  moment,"  vociferated 
Blue  Beard,  "or  I  will  come  and  fetch  you." 

"I  am  coming,"  sobbed  the  wretched  wife,  calling 
again  to  her  sister  in  a  low  voice:  "Anne!  Sister  Anne! 
do  you  see  any  one  coming?" 

"I  see,"  answered  Sister  Anne,  "a  large  cloud  of  dust 
a  little  to  the  right. ": 

"Do  you  think  it  is  my  brothers?"  asked  the  wife. 

"Alas!  no,  dear  sister,"  answered  Anne;  "it  is  only  a 
flock  of  sheep." 

"Will  you,  or  will  you  not,  come  down,  madam?" 
roared  Blue  Beard,  foaming  with  rage. 

"Only  one  short  moment  more,"  answered  his  wife. 
Then  she  again  called  out,  for  the  last  time:  "Anne! 
Sister  Anne!  do  you  see  any  one  coming?" 

"I  see,"  replied  Sister  Anne,  "two  men  approaching 
on  horseback;  but  they  are  still  a  great  distance  off." 

"Thank  God!"  exclaimed  the  poor  wife,  "it  is  my 
brothers." 

"I  beckon  them  to  make  haste,"  said  Sister  Anne,  "as 
well  as  I  can." 

Blue  Beard  now  bellowed  out  so  loudly  for  his  wife  to 
come  downstairs  that  his  voice  shook  the  whole  house. 
The  poor  young  lady,  with  disheveled  hair  and  tears 
streaming  from  her  eyes,  now  came  down,  and  begged 
him  on  her  knees  to  spare  her  life.  "It  is  all  of  no 
avail,"  said  Blue  Beard,  "you  shall  die." 

Seizing  her  by  the  hair  with  one  hand,  and  raising  his 
sword  over  her  head  with  the  other,  he  was  now  prepar- 
ing to  strike  off  her  head,  when  the  unfortunate  young 
lady,  turning  her  dying  looks  on  her  unrelenting  hus- 
band, entreated  him  to  stay  his  hand  a  moment  while 
she  repeated  one  short  prayer.  "No,  no,"  said  Blue 
Beard,  "recommend  your  soul  to  God,  for  you  have  not 
another  moment  to  live." 

While  he  was  steadying  his  arm  to  make  sure  of  his 
blow,  a  loud  knocking  was  heard  at  the  gates,  which 


76 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


made  Blue  Beard  pause  a  moment  to  see  who  it  was.  The 
gates  flew  open,  and  two  officers,  in  full  uniform,  rushed 
into  the  mansion;  they  drew  their  swords  and  hastened 


up  to  Blue  Beard,  who,  knowing  them  at  a  glance  to  be 
his  wife's  brothers,  one  a  dragoon,  and  the  other  a  hus- 
sar, tried  to  escape  from  their  presence.  But  the  broth- 
ers pursued  him  so  nimbly  that  they  overtook  him  before 
he  had  gone  twenty  steps,  and,  passing  their  swords 


v  ( 

»      ( 


Blue 


Beard  seized  her  by  the  hair,  and  raised  his  sword  ***.£ 


" 

''&'••    ' 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  77 

through  his  body,  laid  him  dead-at  their  feet.  The  poor 
wife,  almost  as  dead  as  her  husband,  was  unable  for  some 
time  to  embrace  and  thank  her  brothers  for  their  timely 
rescue. 

As  Blue  Beard  left  no  heirs,  his  wife  inherited  all  his 
immense  wealth.  She  bestowed  part  of  her  vast  fortune, 
as  a  marriage  dowry,  on  her  sister  Anne,  who  was  shortly 
afterward  united  to  a  young  gentleman  who  had  long 
loved  her.  Some  of  the  money  she  laid  out  in  the  pur- 
chase of  captain's  commissions  in  their  respective  regi- 
ments for  her  two  brothers;  and  with  the  residue  she  en- 
dowed a  worthy  and  noble-minded  young  man,  to  whom 
she  was  shortly  afterward  married,  and  whose  kind  treat- 
ment soon  made  her  forget  the  cruel  usage  she  had  re- 
ceived from  Blue  Beard. 


DIAMONDS  AND  TOADS. 

THERE  was  once  upon  a  time  a  widow  who  had  two 
daughters.  The  eldest  was  so  extremely  like  her,  both 
in  temper  and  person,  that  whoever  saw  the  one  saw  the 
other  also;  they  were  both  so  very  proud  and  disagree- 
able that  nobody  could  live  with  them.  The  youngest, 
who  was  the  exact  picture  of  her  father  in  good  nature 
and  sweetness  of  manner,  was  also  the  most  beautiful 
creature  ever  seen.  As  it  is  natural  to  love  those  who 
resemble  us,  the  mother  doted  upon  the  eldest,  and  no 
less  hated  the  youngest.  She  made  her  eat  in  the  kitchen, 
and  work  all  the  day  with  the  servants. 

Among  other  things,  the  poor  child  was  obliged  to  go 
twice  a  day  to  draw  water  at  a  fountain  more  than  a  mile 
and  a  half  distant  from  the  house,  and  bring  home  a  large 
pitcher  filled  with  it,  as  well  as  she  could.  One  day 
when  she  was  at  the  fountain  a  poor  woman  came  up  to 
her,  and  asked  her  to  let  her  drink.  "That  I  will, 
Goody,  most  readily,"  said  the  sweet-tempered  creature: 
and  washing  out  the  pitcher,  she  filled  it  at  the  clearest 
part  of  the  fountain,  and  held  it  to  the  old  woman's 
mouth  that  she  might  drink  the  mqre  easily. 

The  old  woman  having  drunk,  said  to  her:  "Since  you 
are  so  pretty,  so  kind,  and  so  obliging,  my  dear,  I  will 


78  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

bestow  on  you  a  gift"  (for  it  was  a  fairy  in  disguise  who 
had  asked  her  to  drink,  just  to  see  how  far  the  little  girl's 
good-nature  would  go).  "I  give  you,"  continued  she, 


"that  whenever  you  speak  there  shall  come  out  of  your 
mouth  either  a  rose  or  a  diamond." 

When  the  sweet  girl  got  home  her  mother  began  to 
scold  her  for  staying  so  long  at  the  fountain.  "I  ask 
your  pardon,  mamma,"  said  she,  "for  not  being  at  home 


"  Will  you  give  me  a  drink?1'  said  the  poor  woman.     "  That  I  will,"  said  the 
girl.— Page  77.  Old,  Old  Fairy  Tales. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


79 


sooner,"  and  as  she  pronounced  these  words  there  fell 
from  her  lips  two  roses,  two  pearls,  and  two  large  dia- 
monds. 

"What  do  I  see!"  cried  the  mother,  quite  astonished; 
"as  sure  as  anything  she  drops  diamonds  and  pearls  from 


her  mouth  in  speaking!  My  child,  how  happens  this?" 
This  was  the  first  time  she  had  ever  called  her  "My 
child."  The  poor  girl  told  her  mother  all  that  had  be- 
fallen her  at  the  fountain,  dropping  pearls  and  diamonds 
from  her  mouth  all  the  time  she  was  speaking. 

"Upon  my  word,"  said  her  mother,  "this  is  very  lucky, 


80  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

truly.  I  will  send  my  darling  thither  directly.  Fanny, 
Fanny!  Look!  Do  you  see  what  falls  from  the  mouth 
of  your  sister  when  she  speaks?  Should  not  you  like  to 
have  the  same  gift  bestowed  on  you?  Well,  you  have 
only  to  go  to  the  fountain,  and  when  a  poor  woman  asks 
you  to  let  her  drink,  to  grant  her  request  in  the  most 
civil  manner." 

"Vastly  pretty,  truly,  it  would  be  to  see  me  go  and 
draw  water  at  the  fountain!  Not  1,  indeed!"  replied  the 
proud  creature. 

"But  I  insist  upon  your  going,  and  this  very  moment 
too,"  answered  her  mother.  The  pert  girl  accordingly 
set  out,  taking  with  her  the  best  silver  tankard  in  the 
house,  and  grumbling  all  the  way  she  went. 

She  had  no  sooner  reached  the  fountain  than  a  lady 
most  magnificently  dressed  came  out  of  a  wood  just  by, 
and  asked  her  to  let  her  drink.  This  was  the  very  fairy 
who  had  bestowed  the  rich  gift  on  the  youngest  sister, 
and  had  now  taken  the  dress  and  manners  of  a  princess 
to  see  how  far  the  insolent  airs  of  the  haughty  creature 
would  go. 

"Am  I  come  here,"  said  the  ill-bred  minx,  "to  draw 
water  for  you?  Oh,  yes,  the  best  silver  tankard  in  the 
house  was  brought  on  purpose  for  your  ladyship,  I  sup- 
pose! However,  you  may  drink  out  of  it  if  you  have  a 
fancy." 

"You  are  not  very  obliging,"  replied  the  fairy,  without 
putting  herself  in  a  passion;  "but  since  you  have  be- 
haved with  so  little  civility,  I  give  you  for  a  gift  that  at 
every  word  you  speak  there  shall  come  out  of  your  mouth 
either  a  toad  or  a  viper." 

As  soon  as  her  mother  perceived  her  coming  home  she 
called  out:  "Well,  daughter!" 

"Well,  mother,"  answered  the  pert  girl.  And  as  she 
spoke,  two  toads  and  two  vipers  dropped  from  her  mouth 
upon  the  ground. 

"Oh!"  cried  the  mother,  "what  do  I  see?  It  is  thy 
sister  who  is  the  cause  of  all  this!  But  she  shall  pay  for 
it,"  and  instantly  she  went  to  look  for  her  that  she  might 
beat  her. 

The  poor  innocent  ran  away  as  fast  as  she  could,  and 
reached  a  neighboring  forest.  The  king's  son,  who  had 
been  hunting,  happened  to  meet  her,  and,  observing  how 


'Am  I  come  here,"  said  the  ill-bred  minx,  "  to  draw  water  for  yon?'1— Page  8( 

Old,  Old  Fairy  Talts. 


•    , 

-.  "   '  "      • 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  81 

very  beautiful  she  was,  asked  what  she  was  doing  all 
alone  in  the  forest,  and  why  she  cried. 

"Alas!"  said  she,  sobbing  as  if  her  heart  would  break, 
"my  mother,  sir,  has  turned  me  out  of  doors." 

The  king's  son,  seeing  pearls  and  diamonds  fall  from 
her  mouth  at  every  word  she  .spoke,  desired  her  to  tell 
him  the  reason  of  such  a  wonder.  The  pretty  creature 
accordingly  related  to  him  all  that  had  befallen  her  at 
the  fountain. 

The  prince  was  so  charmed  with  her  beauty  and  inno- 
cence that  he  fell  violently  in  love  with  her;  and,  recol- 
lecting also  that  the  gift  she  possessed  was  worth  much 
more  than  the  largest  marriage  portion,  conducted  her  to 
the  palace  of  the  king  his  father,  and  married  her  imme- 
diately. 

As  for  her  sister,  she  grew  even  perter  than  before, 
and  behaved  in  all  respects  so  very  ill  that  her  own 
mother  was  obliged  to  turn  her  out  of  doors;  and  the 
miserable  creature,  after  wandering  a  great  way,  and 
vainly  trying  to  prevail  on  some  one  to  give  her  food  and 
shelter,  wQUti  into  a  wood,  and  there  died  of  grief  and 
hunger. 


FOETUNIO. 

THERE  was  once  a  king  named  Alfourite,  who  was  both 
amiable  and  powerful;  but  his  neighbor,  the  Emperor 
Matapa,  was  still  more  powerful,  and  in  the  last  battle 
they  fought  against  each  other  had  gained  a  complete 
victory,  leaving  the  king  despoiled  of  all  his  treasures; 
these  the  emperor  conveyed  to  his  own  palace,  where  he 
was  received  on  his  return  by  the  empress  with  great  re- 
joicings. 

In  the  meantime,  King  Alfourite  was  in  the  greatest 
affliction  for  the  injury  he  had  sustained,  and  began  to 
think  of  making  some  endeavors  to  regain  what  he  had 
lost.  He  accordingly  assembled  the  small  remains  of  his 
army,  and,  to  increase  its  numbers,  published  a  decree 
that  every  gentleman  and  nobleman  fn  his  kingdom  must 
come  in  person  to  assist  him  in  his  enterprise,  or,  in  case 
of  failure,  pay  a  large  sum  of  money. 


82  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

On  the  frontiers  of  his  kingdom  there  lived  a  nobleman 
who  was  eighty  years  of  age;  he  had  once  been  extremely 
rich,  but  through  misfortunes  was  now  reduced  to  a 
scanty  provision  for  himself  and  three  daughters,  who 
lived  with  him  in  a  happy  and  contented  retirement. 
When  this  old  nobleman  heard  of  the  king's  decree  he 
called  his  daughters  to  him,  telling  them  he  knew  not 
what  to  do;  "for/'  said  he,  "I  am  too  old  to  engage  in 
the  king's  army,  and  to  pay  the  tax  would  ruin  us  at 
once." 

"Do  not  thus  afflict  yourself,  my  father,"  said  his 
daughters;  "some  remedy  may  surely  be  thought  of." 

"I,". said  the  eldest,  "am  young  and  robust,  and  well 
accustomed  to  fatigue;  why  should  not  I  dress  myself 
like  a  cavalier,  and  offer  my  services  to  King  Alfourite?" 

The  old  lord  embraced  her  tenderly,  and,  seeing  her 
earnestly  bent  on  the  experiment,  gave  his  consent;  and 
as  soon  as  the  necessary  preparations  could  be  made  she 
set  out. 

The  princess  had  not  proceeded  far  before  she  ob- 
served an  old  shepherdess,  all  in  tears,  endeavoring  to 
draw  one  of  her  sheep  out  of  the  ditch,  into  which  it'had 
fallen.  "What  are  you  doing,  Goody?"  said  the  cavalier. 

"Alas!"  replied  she,  "I  am  trying  to  save  my  sheep, 
which  is  almost  drowned;  but  I  am  too  weak  to  get  it 
out." 

"You  are  very  unfortunate,  truly,"  answered  he,  at  the 
same  time  spurring  his  horse  to  ride  away. 

"Adieu,  disguised  lady!"  said  the  old  shepherdess. 

No  astonishment  could  exceed  that  of  the  earl's  daugh- 
ter on  finding  herself  discovered.  "If  this  is  the  case," 
said  she,  "I  had  better  return  at  once,  since  a  single 
glance  at  me  is  sufficient  to  convince  every  one  .that  I  am 
not  a  man." 

She  accordingly  returned,  and  related  the  whole  to  her 
father  and  sisters.  The  second  daughter  said:  "It  would 
not  have  been  thus  if  I  had  gone  instead  of  you,  for  I  am 
both  taller  and  more  robust,  and  I  would  lay  any  wager 
I  should  have  succeeded." 

The  old  lord,  on  her  entreaty,  was  prevailed  on  to  let 
his  second  daughter  go  on  the  same  errand,  who  imme- 
diately procured  a  suit  of  clothes  and  another  horse,  and 
took  the  road  her  sister  had  taken  before.  The  old  shep- 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  83 

herdess  was  on  the  same  spot,  and  still  engaged  in  the 
occupation  of  drawing  out  a  sheep  that  was  drowmng. 
Our  young  traveler  asked  what  was  the  matter.  "Un- 
fortunate that  I  am/'  replied  the  old  woman,  "half  my 
flock  have  I  lost  in  this  manner  for  want  of  help." 

"Some  one  will  soon  come  by,  no  doubt,"  said  the 
cavalier;  and  was  turning  his  horse  to  go,  when  the  old 
woman  cried  out: 

"Adieu,  disguised  lady!"  - 

In  utter  amazement  she  stopped  her  horse,  saying  to 
herself:  "I  shall  only  be  laughed  at  should  I  proceed, 
since  even  a  poor  old  shepherdess,  almost  blind,  discovers 
me  without  the  smallest  difficulty."  She  therefore  fol- 
lowed her  sister's  example,  and  returned  to  her  father 
full  of  sorrow  and  disappointment. 

When  she  had  related  her  adventure  the  youngest 
sister,  who,  on  account  of  her  amiable  disposition,  was 
her  father's  favorite,  entreated  that  she  might  not  be 
denied  the  privilege  of  trying  her  fortune  as  well  as  her 
sisters;  which  at  last,  after  much  persuasion,  the  old  lord 
agreed  to:  but,  as  he  had  expended  a  good  deal  of  money 
in  equipping  his  two  eldest  daughters,  he  could  provide 
the  youngest  only  with  a  poor  old  cart-horse,  and  the 
meanest  apparel  imaginable.  "When  these  were  ready 
the  old  gentleman  embraced  her  tenderly,  and  she  bade 
both  him  and  her  sisters  farewell. 

Passing  through  the  same  field,  the  old  shepherdess 
again  presented  herself,  employed  as  before.  "What  are 
you  about,  my  good  woman?"  said  this  amiable  cava- 
lier; "can  I  be  of  any  service  to  you?"  and  perceiving, 
as  he  advanced,  the  sheep  struggling  in  the  water,  im- 
mediately jumped  off  his  horse  and  pulled  it  out.  Upon 
this,  the  old  shepherdess  turned  to  him  and  said: 

"Charming  stranger,  you  shall  find  me  grateful  for  the 
kindness  you  have  done  me.  I  am  a  fairy,  and  know 
well  enough  who  you  are,  and  I  will  be  your  friend." 

Accordingly,  she  touched  the  ground  with  her  wand, 
and  the  most  beautiful  horse,  superbly  harnessed,  stood 
before  them,  and  seemed  to  invite  the  cavalier  to  get 
upon  his  back. 

"The  beauty  of  this  horse,"  continued  the  fairy,  "is 
his  least  perfection;  for  he  possesses  the  rare  quality  of 
eating  only  once  a  week;  and  the  still  rarer,  of  knowing 


84  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

the  past,  the  present,  and  the  future.  If  yon  wish  at 
any  time  to  know  what  you  ought  to  do  for  the  best, 
you  have  only  to  consult  him;  you  should  therefore  re- 
gard him  as  your  best  friend."  The  fairy  added  that  if 
he  stood  in  need  of  clothes,  money,  or  jewels,  he  must 
stamp  with  his  foot  upon  the  ground,  when  a  morocco 
trunk,  containing  the  article  he  desired,  would  instantly 
make  its  appearance.  "We  must  next,"  said  she,  "supply 
you  with  a  proper  name;  and  none,  I  think,  can  be  better 
than  that  of  Fortunio,  since  you  have  had  the  good  for- 
tune to  deserve  my  favor." 

Fortunio  assured  the  fairy  of  his  eternal  gratitude;  he 
*  stamped  with  his  foot  that  he-  might  procure  himself  a 
magnificent  suit  of  clothes;  he  dressed  himself,  em- 
braced his  bountiful  friend,  and  pursued  his  way  to  the 
-palace  of  the  king. 

At  the  end  of  his  first  day's  journey  he  thought  of 
sending  a  sum  of  money  to  his  father,  and  some  jewels  to 
his  sisters;  he  therefore  shut  himself  in  his  chamber,  and 
stamped  loudly  with  his  foot;  a  trunk  immediately  ap- 
peared— but  it  was  locked,  and  without  a  key. 

Fortunio  was  at  a  loss  how  to  remedy  this  new  per- 
plexity; when  suddenly  recollecting  that  Comrade  (so 
the  horse  was  called)  could  most  probably  afford  him 
some  assistance,  he  paid  him  a  visit  in  his  stable.  "Com- 
rade," said  he,  "where  can  I  find  the  key  of  the  trunk 
filled  with  money  and  jewels?" 

"In  my  ear,"  said  Comrade. 

Fortunio  looked  in  his  ear,  and  there  was  the  key  tied 
to  a  piece  of  green  ribbon.  He  then  joyfully  opened  the 
trunk,  and  dispatched  the  presents. 

The  next  morning  he  mounted  his  faithful  Comrade 
and  proceeded  on  his  journey.  They  had  not  gone  far 
when,  passing  through  a  thick  forest,  they  saw  a  man 
cutting  down  trees.  Comrade  stopped  and  told  his  mas- 
ter he  had  better  engage  this  man,  whose  name  was 
Strongback,  in  his  service,  as  a  fairy  had  bestowed  on 
him  the  gift  of  carrying  what  weight  he  chose  upon  his 
back  at  once.  Fortunio  approached,  and  found  him  ex- 
tremely willing  to  accept  his  offer. 

When  they  had  proceeded  a  little  further  they  saw 
another  man,  who  was  tying  his  legs  together.  Com- 
rade again  stopped,  saying:  "Master,  you  cannot  do  bet- 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  85 

ter  than  to  hire  this  man  also;  for  he  has  the  gift  of  run- 
ning ten  times  faster  than  a  deer;  for  which  reason  it  is 
that  he  is  now  tying  his  legs,  that  he  may  not  run  so  fast 
as  to  leave  all  the  game  he  is  going  in  pursuit  of  behind 
him/'  Fortunio  engaged  Lightfoot  also,  without  the 
least  hesitation. 

On  the  following  day  they  perceived  a  man  who  was 
tying  a  bandage  over  his  eyes.  "He,  too,"  said  Com- 
rade, "is  gifted,  for  he  can  see  at  the  distance  of  a  thou- 
sand miles;  on  which  account,  as  he  is  going  to  kill  game, 
he  wishes  to  make  his  sight  less  perfect,  that  he  may  not 
kill  so  many  at  a  time  as  to  leave  none  for  the  following 
day;  he  cannot  fail  of  being  useful  to  us."  Fortunio  ac- 
cordingly engaged  him  without  difficulty,  and  found  his 
name  was  Marksman. 

At  a  short  distance  further  they  saw  a  man  lying  on  his 
side  and  putting  his  ear  to  the  ground.  Fortunio  asked 
Comrade  if  he  too  was  gifted,  and  if  he  thought  he  could 
be  useful  to  him. 

"Nothing  is  more  certain,"  answered  Comrade.  "This 
man  has  the  gift  of  hearing  in  such  perfection  as  none 
before  him  ever  possessed;  his  name  is  Fine-ear,  and  he 
is  this  moment  employed  in  listening  to  hear  if  some 
herbs  he  stands  in  need  of  are  now  coming  up  from  the 
earth." 

Fortunio  thought  the  gift  of  Fine-ear  more  curious 
than  even  the  rest,  and  accordingly  made  him  such  pro- 
posals for  entering  his  serivce  as  he  thought  proper  to 
accept. 

When  they  were  on  their  last  day's  journey  they  had 
the  good  fortune  to  meet  with  another  man,  who,  as  well 
as  the  rest,  was  gifted  in  the  most  extraordinary  manner; 
for  Comrade  assured  him  that  he  could  work  windmills 
with  a  single  breath.  "Shall  I  engage  him  too?"  cried 
Fortunio. 

"You  will  have  reason  to  be  satisfied  if  you  do  so," 
answered  Comrade.  So  Boisterer  was  instantly  engaged. 

Just  as  they  were  in  sight  of  the  city  in  which  the 
palace  stood,  they  observed  two  men  sitting  near  each 
other  on  the  ground.  "Ah!"  cried  Comrade,  "no  one 
was  ever  so  fortunate  as  you,  my  master;  both  these  men 
are  also  gifted;  if  we  had  been  one  minute  later  no 
doubt  we  should  have  missed  them.  He  who  sits  near- 


86  OLD,  OLD  FA  TRY  TALES. 

est  to  us  is  called  Gormand,  because  he  can  eat  a  thou- 
sand loaves  at  a  mouthful.  The  other  drinks  up  whole 
rivers  without  once  stopping  to  breathe;  his  name  is 
Tippler;  get  them  both  into  your  service  and  your  good 
fortune  will  be  complete." 

Fortunio  did  not  hesitate  a  moment  in  doing  as  he  was 
desired;  so  he  proceeded  to  the  palace,  attended  by 
Strongback,  Lightfoot,  Marksman,  Fine-ear,  Boisterer, 
Gormand,  and  Tippler,  who  all  promised  to  use  their  ex- 
traordinary talents  as  he  should  be  pleased  to  command. 

Fortunio  then  stamped  with  his  foot,  and  a  trunk  made 
its  appearance,  liiled  with  the  richest  liveries  to  fit  each 
of  them;  which  they  accordingly  put  on,  and  proceeded 
in  great  pomp  to  the  king's  palace,  where  Fortunio  was 
most  graciously  received,  and  provided  with  the  best 
apartments  it  afforded,  the  king  having  desired  he  would 
rest  from  his  fatigue  before  he  entered  into  conversation 
with  him. 

The  next  day  his  majesty  requested  to  speak  with  For- 
tunio, who  instantly  obeyed  the  summons.  He  presented 
him  to  the  princess,  his  sister;  who,  having  been  married 
when  young  to  a  neighboring  prince,  was  now  a  widow3 
and  was  living  with  her  brother  to  console  him  in  his 
misfortunes.  She  received  Fortunio  very  kindly,  think- 
ing he  was  the  handsomest  prince  she  had  ever  beheld. 
The  king  asked  Fortunio  his  name  and  family;  and  upon 
hearing  he  was  the  son  of  an  earl,  who  had  formerly 
served  in  defense  of  his  crown,  loaded  him  with  new 
distinctions,  and  assured  him  of  his  regard. 

While  preparations  were  making  for  the  attack  that 
was  meditated  against  the  emperor,  our  young  lady  re- 
mained in  the  palace;  and,  being  constantly  in  company 
with  the  king,  perceived  in  him  so  many  amiable  qual- 
ities that  she  would  willingly  have  offered  herself  to  be 
his  page,  if  she  had  not  feared  that  such  a  proposal 
might  look  like  want  of  courage  to  fight  in  his  army. 

But  while  she  was  thus  thinking  she  should  like  to  spend 
her  life  with  the  king,  the  princess,  his  sister,  was  think- 
ing she  should  like  to  spend  hers  with  Fortunio;  for  she 
had  fallen  exceedingly  in  love  with  his  uncommon  beauty. 
She  loaded  him  with  presents,  always  spoke  to  him  in  the 
softest  manner  imaginable,  and  was  in  hopes  he  would 
discover  how  much  she  wished  he  should  feel  for  her  the 
same  affection. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALE8.  8? 

Fortunio,  however,  appeared  perfectly  indifferent;  and 
as  the  king's  company  was  so  very  dear  to  him,  he  con- 
stantly left  the  princess  to  obtain  it;  so  that  at  length 
she  said  to  her  favorite  companion,  Florida:  "He  is  so 
young  and  inexperienced  that  he  will  never  understand 
how  much  I  love  him,  if  he  is  not  told  of  it.  Go/'  con- 
tinued she,  "and  ask  him  if  he  should  not  like  to  marry 
such  a  princess  as  I  am." 

Florida  left  the  princess;  but  being  herself  no  less  in 
love  with  Fortunio,  "whose  condition  and  age,"  said  she, 
"are  surely  more  suitable  to  mine  than  to  the  princess'," 
she  used  the  opportunity  to  tell  him  how  very  peevish 
the  princess  was,  and  how  disagreeable  she  found  her  sit- 
uation. Then,  returning  to  her  mistress,  she  told  her 
that  all  she  said  made  no  impression  on  Fortunio,  who, 
she  did  not  doubt,  was  in  love  with  some  lady  of  his  own 
country. 

The  princess  sent  Florida  from  time  to  time  upon  the 
same  expedition,  without  the  least  success.  At  length 
she  determined  to  see  him  herself  in  private;  accord- 
ingly, she  ordered  Florida  to  watch  when  he  should  be 
walking  alone  near  a  small  arbor  in  the  garden.  She  did 
not  wait  long  for  the  opportunity  she  desired;  seeing 
Fortunio  near  the  arbor,  she  waited  till  he  had  entered 
it,  and  then  proceeded  thither.  Fortunio  on  seeing  her 
would  have  retired;  but  she  desired  him  to  stay  and  assist 
her  with  his  arm  in  walking.  The  princess  at  first  talked 
of  the  fineness  of  the  weather,  and  the  beauty  of  the  gar- 
dens and  the  fountains.  At  length  she  said:  "You  can- 
not, Fortunio,  but  be  sensible  of  the  great  affection  I  bear 
you.  I  am  therefore  surprised  that  you  do  not  take  ad- 
vantage of  your  good  fortune,  by  asking  me  in  marriage 
of  the  king,  my  brother." 

Fortunio  was  thrown  into  the  greatest  confusion,  which 
the  princess  interpreted  as  a  proof  that  he  did  not  dislike 
-what  she  had  proposed;  but  what  was  her  surprise  and 
indignation,  when,  a  moment  after,  he  said:  "I  feel  for 
you,  madam,  all  the  respect  due  to  the  sister  of  so  amia- 
ble a  king;  but  I  am  not  free  to  marry  you."  She  was 
red  and  pale  by  turns;  and  after  telling  him  he  should 
repent  his  coldness,  she  left  him  suddenly. 

The  earl's  daughter  was  now  in  the  greatest  perplexity 
imaginable,  and  would  have  found  some  pretense  for  ab- 


88  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

senting  herself  from  the  palace  till  the  army  should  be 
ready,  if  she  could  have  left  the  king  without  the  great- 
est pain.  Her  uneasiness  every  day  increased,  and  she 
carefully  avoided  meeting  the  princess  alone. 

One  day,  as  the  king,  the  princess,  and  Fortunio  were 
sitting  at  their  dessert,  the  king  looked  very  melancholy; 
and  his  sister  asking  him  the  reason.  "You  know/'  said 
he,  "what  an  affliction  has  happened  in  my  kingdom.  A 
great  dragon  has  devoured  several  of  my  subjects,  and 
many  flocks  of  sheep;  his  breath  poisons  the  waters  of 
the  fountains  he  approaches,  and  destroys  all  the  fields 
of  corn  through  which  he  passes.  Can  you,  therefore, 
wonder  at  my  sorrow?" 

The  princess  thought  she  could  not  have  a  better  op- 
portunity of  revenging  herself  for  the  indifference  of  the 
young  cavalier.  "Brother,"  said  she,  "here  is  the  brave 
Fortunio,  who  would  esteem  it,  no  doubt,  the  highest 
honor  to  be  permitted  to  kill'  this  monster,  and  thus  re- 
ward the  kindness  your  majesty  has  been  pleased  to  show 
him." 

Fortunio  could  not  but  accept  the  proffered  honor; 
which  the  princess  was  in  hopes  would  be  the  means  of 
revenging  the  affront  he  had  offered  her,  by  being  the 
cause  of  his  death.  He  had  no  sooner  left  the  room  than 
he  went  to  his  faithful  Comrade,  to  know  in  what  man- 
ner he  should  set  about  the  enterprise.  "You  should 
go,"  replied  Comrade,  "in  pursuit  of  the  dragon,  as  the 
king  requires,  and  take  with  you  the  seven  gifted  attend- 
ants you  lately  engaged." 

Fortunio  the  next  morning  waited  accordingly  on  the 
king  and  princess  to  take  a  formal  leave.  The  king  gave 
him  the  kindest  assurances  imaginable,  and  bade  him 
adieu  with  the  sincerest  sorrow  for  the  danger  to  which 
he  would  soon  be  exposed.  The  princess  tried  to  seem 
extremely  sorry  also,  and  expressed  her  wishes  to  see  him 
return  in  safety.  After  this  Fortunio,  mounted  on  Com- 
rade and  attended  by  Strongback,  Lightfoot,  Marksman, 
Fine-ear,  Boisterer,  Gormand,  and  Tippler,  set  out  to 
find  the  dragon.  They  were,  indeed,  of  immediate  use 
to  him  in  this- undertaking;  for  Tippler  drank  up  all  the 
rivers,  so  that  they  could  easily  cross  from  field  to  field, 
and  catch  the  rarest  kinds  of  fish  for  their  master's  din- 
ner. Lightfoot  ran  after  hares  and  rabbits;  Marksman 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  $9 

shot  at  partridges  and  pheasants;  Strongback  carried 
them  all  upon  his  back;  and  Fine-ear,  by  putting  his  ear 
to  the  ground,  found  out  the  places  where  the  mush- 
rooms and  kitchen  herbs  were  coming  out  of  the  ground. 
They  had  not  proceeded  more  than  a  day's  journey 
when  they  heard  the  cries  of  some  peasants  that  the 
dragon  was  eating  up  as  fast  as  he  could.  Fortunio  im- 


mediately  asked  Comrade  what  he  should  do.  "Let 
Fine-ear  find  out  in  what  place  he  is,"  answered  Com- 
rade. Fine-ear  immediately  put  his  ear  to  the  ground, 
and  informed  his  master  the  dragon  was  seven  leagues 
off.  "Then,"  continued  Comrade,  "let  Tippler  drink 
up  all  the  rivers  that  are  between  us,  and  let  Strongback 
carry  wine  enough  to  fill  them,  and  next  strew  some  of 
the  hares  and  partridges  alo?ig  them."  Fortunio  then 
entered  a  house  that  stood  near  to  watch  the  event.  In 


90  OLD,  OLD  FAXR7  TALES. 

less  than  an  hour  the  dragon  was  in  sight,  and,  smelling 
the  hares  and  partridges,  began  to  eat  voraciously;  and 
finding  himself  at  length  thirsty,  he  drank  no  less 
eagerly  of  the  wine;  so  that  in  a  short  time,  being  quite 
tipsy,  he  threw  himself  on  the  ground  and  fell  fast- 
asleep.  "Now  is  your  time,  my  good  master,"  said  the 
faithful  Comrade.  Fortunio  immediately  approached 
the  dragon,  and  with  a  single  blow  cut  off  his  head,  and 
then  commanded  Strongback  to  take  him  up  and  carry 
him  to  the  palace. 

The  king  received  Fortunio  with  the  liveliest  joy  and 
affection,  and  the  princess,  too,  disguising  as  well  as  she 
could  her  disappointment,  returned  him  thanks  for  the 
service  he  had  done  to  the  whole  kingdom.  "At  the 
same  time,"  thinks  she  to  herself,  "it  shall  not  be  long 
before  I  find  some  better  means  of  being  revenged." 

Soon  after,  the  king  being  again  extremely  sorrowful, 
the  princess  inquired  the  cause  as  before.  "Alas!"  said 
he,  "how  can  I  be  otherwise,  since  the  emperor  has  not 
left  me  money  enough  to  prepare  the  •  army  I  had  in- 
tended to  send  out  against  him?" 

"Brother,"  answered  she,  "can  you  suppose  that  For- 
tunio, who  was  able  to  do  what  twenty  armies  could  not 
have  done  in  killing  the  dragon,  is  not  also  able  to  oblige 
the  emperor  to  restore  your  treasures?  I  am  certain  you 
are  most  unjust  if  you  believe  the  contrary." 

Fortunio,  though  he  fully  understood  the  malice  of 
the  princess,  could  not  but  assure  his  majesty  of  his 
earnest  desire  to  make  the  experiment;  upon  which  the 
king,  after  tenderly  embracing  him  and  protesting  that 
should  any  accident  befall  him  in  the  undertaking  he 
should  never  again  be  happy,  gave  him  the  necessary  in- 
structions for  his  departure. 

Fortunio  lost  no  time  in  consulting  Comrade,  saying 
he  feared  his  destruction  was  now  certain.  "Do  not,  my 
dear  master,  thus  afflict  yourself,"  said  Comrade.  "I 
have  long  foreseen  that  this  would  happen,  and  I  have 
no  doubt  you  will  return  from  your  undertaking  as  vic- 
torious as  before.  You  should  give  to  each  of  your  at- 
tendants," continued  he,  "a  new  and  splendid  livery,  let 
them  be  mounted  on  handsome  horses,  and  we  will  set 
out  without  delay." 

They  arrived  in  a  few  hours  in  the  city  of  the  emperor, 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  91 

when,  after  taking  some  refreshment,  they  proceeded  to 
the  palace,  where  Fortunio  demanded  of  him  an  inter- 
view, in  whch  he  made  a  formal  claim  to  all  the  treasures 
of  King  Alfourite.  The  emperor  at  this  could  not  re- 
strain a  smile.  "Do  you  really  think, "  said  he,  "that  I 
should  so  easily  resign  what  I  took  such  pains  to  obtain? 
If  you  had  brought  an  army  with  you,  we  might,  to  be 
sure,  have  contended  for  the  victory;  but  as  it  is,  1  would 
advise  you,  young  cavalier,  not  to  force  me  to  use  harsh 
means  in  sending  you  out  of  my  kingdom."  Fortunio 
replied  that  he  meant  no  incivility,  but, begged  the  em- 
peror to  consider  his  request. 

"This  is  really  very  extraordinary,"  said  the  emperor; 
"however,  as  your  demand  is  ridiculous  enough,  I  will 
offer  you  a  condition  no  less  ridiculous.  If  you  can  find 
a  man  that  will  eat  all  the  bread  that  has  been  provided 
for  the  inhabitants  of  this  city  for  his  breakfast,  I  will 
grant  your  request." 

Fortunio  could  scarce  contain  himself  for  joy.     He  re- 

Elied  that  he  accepted  the  condition,  and  sent  instantly 
Dr  Gormand,  when,  telling  him  what  had  passed,  he  in- 
quired if  he  was  quite  sure  he  could  eat  the  whole. 
"Never  fear,  my  good  master,"  answered  Gormand;  "you 
will  see  that  they  will  be  sooner  sorry  than  I." 

When  the  emperor,  the  empress,  the  princess  his 
daughter,  and  the  whole  court  had  seated  themselves  to 
witness  this  extraordinary  undertaking,  Fortunio  ad- 
vanced with  Gormand  by  his  side,  and,  seeing  six  great 
mountains  of  loaves  that  almost  reached  the  skies,  he 
began  to  fear;  but  looking  at  Gormand,  and  seeing  how 
eager  he  was  to  begin,  he  again  took  courage.  When  the 
proper  signal  was  given  Gormand  attacked  the  first 
mountain,  and  in  less  than  a  minute  had  swallowed  the 
whole;  he  did  the  same  with  the  second,  and  so  on  to  the 
sixth,  which  having  completely  devoured,  he  told  the 
emperor  he  must  take  the  liberty  to  say  he  had  had  but  a 
scanty  breakfast,  considering  he  was  in  the  dominions  of 
so  rich  a  monarch. 

Never  was  any  astonishmment  so  great  as  that  of  the 
spectators;  and  the  inhabitants  of  ^he  city,  who  had  all 
assembled  to  see  so  singular  a  sight,  now  began  crying, 
and  said,  "We  shall  have  no  bread  to  give  our  children 
for  many  days." 


<&  OLD,  OLT)  FAIRY  TALES, 

But  the  emperor's  disappointment  was  still  greater;  so 
commanding  Fortunio  to  approach,  he  said:  " Young 
cavalier,  you  cannot  possibly  expect  that  I  should  give 
you  the  treasures  of  King  Alfourite  because  you  happen 
to  have  a  servant  who  is  a  great  eater.  However,  to  show 
you  that  I  hold  you  in  some  consideration,  find  a  man 
who  shall  drink  up  all  the  rivers,  aqueducts,  and  reser- 
voirs, together  with  all  the  wine  that  is  in  the  cellars  of 
all  my  subjects,  in  the  space  of  a  minute,  and  I  promise 
to  grant  your  request." 

Fortunio  thought  his  majesty  acted  very  dishonorably, 
yet  he  did  not  hesitate  to  accept  his  new  proposal.  Ac- 
cordingly Tippler  was  immediately  sent  for,  and  per- 
formed his  task  with  equal  ease,  to  the  astonishment  of 
the  surrounding  multitude. 

The  emperor  now  looked  extremely  grave,  telling  For- 
tunio that  what  he  had  seen,  though  extremely  singular, 
was  not  enough  to  deserve  the  costly  recompense  he 
claimed.  "Therefore,"  continued  he,  "if  you  would  ob- 
tain it,  you  must  find  a  person  who  is  as  swift  in  running 
as  my  daughter."  Fortunio,  though  extremely  dissatis- 
fied, was  obliged  to  consent;  and,  sending  for  Lightfoot, 
bade  him  prepare  for  running  a  race  with  a  princess 
whom  no  one  had  ever  yet  been  able  to  overtake.  In  the 
meantime  the  princess  retired  to  put  on  the  dress  and 
shoes  which  had  been  made  on  purpose  for  her  to  run  in, 
and  on  her  return,  finding  Lightfoot  ready  for  the  con- 
test, they  prepared  to  set  off  at  the  appointed  signal. 
The  princess  now  called  for  some  of  the  cordial  she  was 
accustomed  to  drink  when  she  was  going  to  run,  upon 
which  Lightfoot  observed  it  would  be  but  just  that  he 
should  have  some  too.  To  this  the  princess  readily  con- 
sented, and,  stepping  aside,  she  dexterously  threw  into 
his  glass  a  few  drops  of  a  liquid  that  had  the  power  to 
throw  him  into  a  profound  sleep. 

The  signal  being  given,  the  princess  set  off  full  speed, 
while  Lightfoot,  instead  of  doing  the  same,  threw  him- 
self on  the  ground  and  fell  fast  asleep.  The  race  was  sev- 
eral miles  long,  and  the  princess  had  proceeded  more 
than  halfway,  when  Fortunio,  seeing  her  approach  the 
goal  without  Lightfoot,  turned  as  pale  as  death,  and 
cried  out,  "Comrade,.  I  am  undone;  I  see  nothing  of 
Lightfoot." 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  OS 

"My  lord,"  answered  Comrade,  "Fine-ear  shall  tell 
you  in  a  moment  how  far  he  is  off."  Fine-ear  listened, 
and  informed  Fortunio  that  Lightfoot  was  snoring  in  the 
place  from  which  the  princess  began  her  race.  Then 
Comrade  directed  Marksman  to  shoot  an  arrow  into  his 
ear,  which  he  did  so  perfectly  that  Lightfoot  started  up 
and,  seeing  the  princess  nearly  arrived  at  the  goal,  set  off 
with  such  rapidity  that  he  seemed  carried  by  the  winds, 
and,  passing  the  princess,  reached  it  before  her. 

The  emperor  was  now  almost  frantic  with  rage;  and 
recollecting  that  he  had  some  years  ago  displeased  a  fairy, 
he  concluded  that  the  miracles  he  had  seen  performed 
were  contrived  by  her  to  punish  him:  he  therefore 
thought  it  would  be  useless  to  propose  further  experi- 
ments; and  calling  for  Fortunio,  he  said  to  him,  "It 
cannot  be  denied  that  you  have  accomplished  my  condi- 
tions; take  therefore  away  with  you  as  much  of  the  treas- 
ures of  King  Alfourite  as  one  of  your  attendants  can 
carry  on  his  back." 

Fortunio  desired  nothing  better;  and  being  instantly 
admitted  to  the  storerooms  which  contained  them,  he 
commanded  Strongback  to  begin  to  load  himself. 
Strongback  accordingly  laid  hold  at  first  of  five  hundred 
statues  of  gold,  taller  than  giants,  next  of  ten  thousand 
bags  of  money,  and  afterward  of  as  many  filled  with  pre- 
cious stones;  he  then  took  the  chariots  and  horses:  in 
short,  he  left  not  a  single  article  that  had  formerly  be- 
longed to  King  Alfourite. 

They  then  hastened  from  the  palace,  and  proceeded  to 
King  Alfourite's  dominions.  No  sooner  were  they  on 
the  road  than  the  seven  gifted  attendants  began  to  ask 
what  recompense  they  were  to  have  for  their  services. 
"The  recompense  belongs  tome,"  said  Lightfoot;  "for  if 
I  had  not  outrun  the  princess,  we  might  have  returned 
as  we  came." 

"And,  pray,"  says  Fine-ear,  "what  would  you  have 
done  if  I  had  not  heard  you  snore?" 

"I  think  you  must  both  acknowledge,"  says  Marks- 
man, "that  our  success  was  owing  to  my  shooting  the 
arrow  exactly  into  Lightfoot's  ear.". 

"I  cannot  help  wondering  at  your  arrogance,"  says 
Strongback;  "pray  who  brought  away  the  treasures?  To 
whom  can  you  be  indebted  but  to  me?" 


94  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

Thus  they  were  going  on,  when  Fortunio  interrupted 
them  with  saying:  "It  is  true,  my  friends,  you  have  all 
performed  miracles;  but  you  should  leave  to  the  king  the 
care  of  rewarding  you.  He  sent  us  to  regain  his  treas- 
ures, and  not  to  steal  them:  but,"  continued  he,  "should 
his  majesty  fail  to  reward  you,  yet  you  shall  have  no  rea- 
son to  complain,  for  I  will  take  upon  myself  to  gratify 
your  largest  expectations." 

Fortunio  arrived  in  safety  with  the  treasures  at  the 
palace  of  King  Alfourite,  who  beheld  him  with  amaze- 
ment, and  embraced  him  in  the  utmost  transport;  and 
his  bravery  so  increased  the  attachment  the  princess  had 
conceived  for  him  that  she  that  very  day  desired  to  speak 
with  him  in  private,  intending  once  more  to  question  him 
as  to  his  thoughts  concerning  her:  "For,"  says  she  to 
herself,  "when  I  remind  him  of  the  honors  I  have  been 
the  means  of  his  obtaining,  how  can  he  do  otherwise  than 
return  my  affection?" 

Fortunio  received  her  .summons,  but  sent  her  for  an- 
swer that  he  could  not  nave  the  pleasure  of  waiting  on 
her.  The  princess,  enraged  by  his  disdain,  ran  to  the 
king  all  in  tears,  in  the  middle  of  the  night,  and  declared 
that  Fortunio  had  sent  Strongback  to  her  chamber  to 
carry  her  away  by  force,  that  he  might  marry  her:  that 
previous  to  his  late  enterprise  he  had  himself  engaged  in 
a  similar  attempt.  "In  short,  dear  brother,"  said  the 
artful  creature,  "nothing  but  the*  death  of  this  presump- 
tuous wretch  can  satisfy  my  vengeance,  or  insure  my 
safety  " 

The  king's  affliction  at  hearing  this  was  greater  than 
can  be  described;  and  having  passed  the  night  in  lament- 
ing the  cruel  necessity  to  which  he  was  reduced  of  pun- 
ishing him,  he  the  next  morning  ordered  him  to  be  taken 
into  custody,  and  to  be  tried  for  the  offense. 

When  the  time  of  trial  came  it  was  in  vain  that  For- 
tunio pleaded  his  innocence:  no  one  believed  it  possible 
for  a  great  princess  to  invent  so.  wicked  a  falsehood:  so 
the  judges  declared  him  guilty,  and  condemned  him  to 
receive  three  darts  shot  into  his  heart  on  that  very  day. 

The  king  left  the  court  shedding  many  tears;  but  the 
cruel  princess  stayed  to  see  the  sentence  executed.  The 
officer,  approaching  Fortunio,  unbottoned  his  waistcoat, 
and  then  opened  his  shirt,  that  his  heart  might  be  bare 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  95 

to  receive  the  darts;  but  no  sooner  was  this  done  than 
the  snowy  whiteness  of  the  bosom  that  appeared  con- 
vinced all  the  beholders  that  the  sufferer  was  a  womane 

Every  eye  was  immediately  turned  upon  the  princess, 
to  reproach  her  with  the  baseness  of  her  conduct  in  bring- 
ing so  false  an  accusation  against  an  innocent  creature, 
and  one,  besides,  who  had  shown  such  an  unexampled 
courage,  and  done  the  state  such  signal  services;  while 
she,  unable  to  bear  the  shame  that  awaited  her,  took  out 
of  her  pocket  a  sharp  knife  and  plunged  it  into  her 
heart,  saying,  "Fortunio  is  revenged  of  my  injustice." 

Fortunio  was  led  in  triumph  to  the  palace;  and  the 
king,  when  he  had  spent  some  weeks  in  bewailing  the  un- 
fortunate end  of  the  princess  his  sister,  made  an  offer  of 
his  hand  and  crown  to  Fortunio.  Their  marriage  was 
celebrated  with  the  greatest  pomp.  The  old  earl  and  his 
two  daughters  were  sent  for  on  the  occasion,  and  ever 
after  remained  at  court.  The  first  care  of  the  new  queen 
was  to  provide  a  magnificent  stable  for  Comrade,  whom 
she  visited  daily,  and  consulted  upon  all  affairs  of  im- 
portance, so  that  the  king  never  after  lost  a  battle.  She 
settled  a  handsome  pension  on  Strongback,  Lightfoot, 
Marksman,  Fine-ear,  Boisterer,  Gormand,  and  Tippler, 
who  all  lived  together  in  a  splendid  castle  a  few  miles  in 
the  country,  it  being  agreed  between  the  queen  and  them 
that  when  her  majesty  should  have  occasion  for  their 
service  she  should  say  so  to  some  one  in  the  palace,  so 
that  Fine-ear  might  catch  the  sound,  and  send  the  per- 
son she  desired. 

The  queen  sent  an  express  to  invite  the  old  shepherdess 
to  court:  but  she  refused,  saying  that  all  she  wished  was 
the  queen's  happiness,  and  that  she  should  now  leave  the 
world  with  satisfaction. 


THE  STORY  OF  PRINCE  TITO. 

THERE  was  once  upon  a  time  a  king  named  Guinguet, 
who  was  a  great  miser.  When  he  wished  to  marry  he 
sought  for  a  wife  not  a  good  or  clever  woman,  but  a 
princess  who  had  a  great  deal  of  money  and  liked  to  save 
it.  He  succeeded  in  finding  this  treasure — a  miserly  and 


96 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


wealthy  wife.  They  had  two  sons.  The  elder  was  called 
Tito,  the  younger  Mirtillo.  Tito  was  a  charming  child, 
pretty  and  engaging,  but  the  king  and  queen  took  a 
strong  dislike  to  him  when  they  saw  him  sharing  his  toys 
with  other  little  children.  Mirtillo  would  rather  let  his 
bonbons  spoil  than  give  them  away;  he  put  away  his  play- 


things for  fear  of  spoiling  them  by  playing  with  them, 
and  when  he  held  anything  in  his  hand  he  clasped  it  so 
closely  that  even  in  sleep  it  could  not  be  taken  from  him. 
His  parents  consequently  adored  this  little  reflection  of 
themselves.  The  princes  grew  up,  and,  for  fear  Tito 
should  spend  his  money,  the  king  gave  him  none.  One 
day,  as  Tito  was  hunting,  one  of  his  attendants,  riding 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  97 

swiftly  up  to  him,  knocked  down  an  old  woman,  who  fell 
into  the  mud  and  cried  out  loudly  that  her  leg  was 
broken;  but  the  young  squire  who  had  caused  the  acci- 
dent only  laughed.  Tito  indignantly  reproached  his  at- 
tendant for  being  so  unfeeling,  sprang  off  his  horse,  and 
went,  with  his  favorite  page,  Eveille,  to  the  aid  of  the 
unfortunate  woman.  They  raised  her  and,  taking  each 
an  arm,  led  her  back  to  her  little  cottage,  which  was 
near  the  spot. 

The  prince  was  in  despair  at  having  no  money  to  give 
the  poor  creature  to  atone  for  the  injury  done  her. 

"Of  what  use  is  it  to  be  a  prince,  when  one  has  not  the 
power  of  doing  good?"  he  said  bitterly. 

"My  prince,"  replied  Eveille,  "I  have  a  crown,  which 
is  at  your  disposal." 

"Thank  you,  Eveille;  I  will  borrow  it  and  pay  you 
when  I  am  king,"  said  Tito.  "I  accept  your  crown  for 
this  poor  woman." 

When  Tito  returned  to  the  court  the  queen,  who  had 
heard  of  the  accident,  reproved  him  for  "debasing  him- 
self by  giving  personal  help  to  a  beggar." 

"Madam,"  replied  Tito,  "I  think  a  prince  is  never 
greater  than  when  he  is  doing  good." 

"You  are  a  simpleton  for  thinking  so,"  exclaimed  his 
mother. 

The  next  day,  under  pretense  of  hunting,  Tito  rode  to 
the  cottage  to  ask  how  the  old  woman  was.  He  found 
her  well,  and  she  thanked  him  for  the  charity  he  had 
bestowed  on  her. 

"I  have  a  favor  to  ask  of  you,  my  prince,"  she  added; 
"I  have  some  nuts  and  medlars  which  are  very  good;  I 
beg  you  to  eat  some  of  them." 

The  prince  did  not  like  to  refuse,  lest  the  old  dame 
should  think  that  he  despised  her  humble  offering.  He 
tasted  the  nuts  and  medlars,  and  found  them  excellent. 

"Since  you  like  them,"  said  the  dame,  "do  me  the 
honor  of  taking  the  remainder  for  your  dessert." 

At  that  moment  a  hen  clucked;  the  woman  ran  into  the 
yard  and  brought  in  a  new-laid  egg,  which  she  begged 
the  prince  also  to  accept.  He  received  her  gifts  very 
kindly,  fearing  lest  he  should  hurt  her  feelings  if  he  re- 
fused, and  gave  her  in  return  four  g'uineas  that  Eveille 
had  brought  him  from  his  father,  who  was  a  rich  couu- 


98  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

try  gentleman.  The  prince  on  his  return  home  ordered 
them  to  give  him  the  egg  and  nuts  for  his  supper;  but 
on  breaking  the  egg  he  was  astonished  to  find  in  it  a 
large  diamond;  the  walnuts  and  medlars  were  also  full 
of  diamonds.  The  attendants  were  very  much  aston- 
ished, and  some  of  them  ran  at  once  and  told  the  queen 
of  this  singular  discovery.  She  hastened  at  once  to  her 
son's  room,  and  was  so  charmed  at  seeing  the  diamonds 
that  she  kissed  Tito,  and  called  him  "her  dear  son/'  for 
the  first  time  in  her  life. 

"Will  you  give  me  these  diamonds?"  she  asked. 

"All  that  I  have  is  at  your  service,  my  mother,"  re- 
plied the  generous  son. 

"You  are  a  good  boy,"  exclaimed  the  queen;  "I  shall 
reward  you  for  you*  kindness." 

She  went  off  with  the  diamonds,  and  soon  after  sent 
the  prince  four  guineas  neatly  folded  in  a  piece  of  paper. 

The  prince's  attendants  exclaimed  loudly  that  they 
wonderecKthe  queen  was  not  ashamed  to  send  only  four 
guineas  in  return  for  a  gift  of  the  value  of  five  hundred 
thousand  pounds;  but  the  prince  checked  them  with  a 
frown,  and  ordered  them  to  leave  the  room  for  their  want 
of  respect  to  their  sovereign. 

The  queen  meanwhile  said  to  Guinguet: 

"It  is  plain  that  the  old  woman  Tito  helped  is  a  pow- 
erful fairy;  we  must  go  and  see  her  to-morrow,  and  we 
will  take  Mirtillo  with  us,  for  I  don't  wish  her  to  make  a 
favorite  of  this  stupid  boy,  who  throws  away  diamonds." 

So  she  ordered  the  carriages  to  be  cleaned,  and  that 
some  horses  should  be  hired — for  they  kept  none  of  their 
own,  to  save  expense. 

They  filled  one  of  the  two  carriages  with  physicians, 
surgeons,  and  apothecaries;  and  the  royal  family  went  in 
the  other.  When  they  had  entered  the  old  woman's 
cabin  the  queen  told  her  that  she  had  called  to  apologize 
for  the  thoughtlessness  of  her  son's  squire. 

"My  son,"  she  added,  "has  not  the  sense  to  choose 
good  attendants,  but  I  shall  order  him  to  discharge  that 
brutal  young  man." 

Then  she  told  the  old  woman  that  she  had  brought  the 
cleverest  doctors  in  the  kingdom  to  cure  her  injured  foot. 
The  old  woman  answered  that  her  foot  was  quite  well, 
and  that  she  was  much  obliged  to  her  majesty  for  her 
kindness  in  coming  to  see  her — a  poor  old  woman. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  99 

"Oh!"  said  the  queen,  "but  we  know  that  you  are  a 
great  fairy,  for  you  have  given  Prince  Tito  a  quantity  of 
diamonds." 

"I  assure  you,  madam,"  replied  the  woman,  "that  I 
only  gave  the  prince  an  egg,  and  some  walnuts  and  med- 
lars. I  have  a  few  more  at  the  service  of  your  majesty, 
if  you  will  deign  to  accept  them." 

"I  accept  them  gratefully,"  said  the  queen,  who  was 
charmed  at  the  hope  of  getting  more  diamonds.  She  re- 
ceived the  nuts,  and  embraced  the  old  woman;  and  the 
courtiers,  following  her  example,  paid  great  court  to  the 
peasant.  The  queen  asked  her  age. 

"I  am  sixty,"  she  answered. 

"You  don't  look  forty,"  said  the  queen.  "You  ought 
to  think  of  marrying,  for  you  are  really  very  amiable." 

Prince  Mirtillo,  who  was  very  badly  brought  up,  burst 
into  a  loud  laugh  when  he  heard  his  mother  speak  thus, 
and  said  that  he  hoped  he  should  have  the  pleasure  of 
dancing  at  her  wedding. 

But  the  good  woman  did  not  seem  to  perceive  that  he 
was  making  fun  of  her.  Then  the  royal  visitors  took 
leave  of  hei  and  drove  home.  The  queen  instantly  sent 
the  egg  to  be  cooked,  broke  the  walnuts,  and  opened  the 
medlars;  but  instead  of  finding  diamonds  she  found  a 
little  chick  in  the  egg,  and  the  walnuts  and  medlars  were 
full  of  worms.  The  queen  flew  into  a  great  passion. 

"That  old  woman  is  a  witch,"  she  cried,  "who  has 
ridiculed  and  mocked  me.  I  will  have  her  put  to  death." 

She  assembled  the  judges  to  try  the  old  woman,  but 
Eveille,  who  had  heard  it  all,  hurried  to  the  cabin  to  save 
the  poor  peasant. 

"Good-morning,  Page  of  Old  Women, "she  said,  laugh- 
ing (for  thus  the  courtiers  had  named  him  since  he  had 
pulled  her  out  of  the  mud). 

"Ah,  my  good  mother!"  said  Eveille,  "hasten  to  seek 
safety  in  my  father's  house.  He  is  an  excellent  man — he 
will  hide  you  willingly;  but  if  you  remain  here  you  will 
be  seized  and  put  to  death." 

"I  am  much  obliged  to  you  for  your  kindness,"  said 
the  old  woman,  '"but  I  do  not  fear  the  wicked  queen;" 
and  she  suddenly  changed  from  an  old* woman  to  a  beau- 
tifui  fairy.  Eveille  was  dazzled  by  her  loveliness,  and 
would  have  thrown  himself  at  her  feet,  but  she  prevented 
him. 


100  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

"I  forbid  yon,"  she  said,  "to  tell  the  prince  or  any 
one  else  what  you  have  seen;  but  I  wish  to  recompense 
your  charity.  Ask  me,  therefore,  for  a  gift." 

"Madam,"  said  the  page,  "I  dearly  love  my  master, 
Prince  Tito;  to  serve  him  I  will  ask  of  you  a  great  gift. 
Enable  me  to  become  invisible,  so  that  I  may  know  who 
are  his  true  friends  among  the  courtiers,  and  protect  him 
from  their  plots,  for  he  has  cruel  enemies." 

"I  grant  you  this  gift,"  said  the  fairy;  "but  now  I 
must  pay  Tito's  debts.  Did  he  not  borrow  four  guineas 
from  your  father?" 

"He  has  returned  them,  madam.  He  thinks  that  it  is 
shameful  for  princes  not  to  pay  -their  debts.  He  re- 
turned the  four  guineas  the  moment  the  queen  sent  them 
to  him." 

"I  know  that,"  said  the  fairy,  "but  the  prince  is  un- 
happy because  he  could  not  acknowledge  the  loan  by  a 
gift,  and  it  is  that  debt  which  I  wish  to  pay.  Take  this 
purse,  which  is  full  of  gold,  carry  it  to  your  father,  and 
tell  him  he  will  always  iind  the  same  sum  in  it,  provided 
that  he  only  takes  money  from  it  to  do  good  actions." 

The  fairy  then  disappeared,  and  Eveille  carried  the 
purse  to  his  father,  and  besought  him  to  keep  it  secret. 

The  judges  called  by  the  queen  to  try  the  old  woman 
were,  meantime,  greatly  embarrassed,  and  said  to  her: 
"For  what  can  we  try  this  poor  woman?  She  has  not 
deceived  your  majesty.  She  told  you  that  she  was  poor 
and  had  no  diamonds." 

The  queen  was  furiously  angry,  and  said,  "If  you  will 
not  condemn  this  wretch,  who  has  mocked  me,  and  put 
me  to  the  expense  of  hiring  horses  and  paying  doctors, 
you  shall  repent  it." 

The  judges  thought  to  themselves,  "The  queen  is  a 
very  wicked  woman;  if  we  disobey  her  she  will  find 
means  to  kill  us.  It  is  better  that  an  old  woman  should 
perish  than  that  we  should."  So  they  condemned  the 
old  woman  to  be  burned  alive  as  a  witch. 

There  was  one  judge,  however,  who  would  not  agree 
to  this  verdict.  He  said  that  he  would  rather  be  burned 
alive  himself  than  condemn  an  innocent  person. 

A  few  days  afterward  the  queen  found  false  witnesses 
who  declared  that  this  good  judge  had  spoken  against 
her.  His  office  was  taken  from  him,  and  he,  his  wife  and 


OLD,  OLD  FAIR 7  TATj&S..    ,     ..»..-,  101, 

children,  were  reduced  to  beggary.  But  Hveilte  took  a' 
large  sum  from  the  fairy  purse,  and,  giving  it  to  the 
judge,  advised  him  to  go  and  live  happily  in  another 
country,  and  he  took  the  advice  and  went  to  England, 
where  he  lived  very  happily. 

Meantime  Eveille  made  himself  very  often  invisible  (he 
could  do  so  by  a  wish),  and  heard  many  secrets  and  much 
that  amused  him;  but  he  was  too  honorable  ever  to  re- 
peat anything  he  thus  overheard. 

He  was  often  invisible  in  the  king's  cabinet,  and  one 
day  he  heard  the  queen  say  to  her  husband,  "Are  we  not 
unfortunate  in  having  Tito  for  our  eldest  son!  We  are 
amassing  great  treasure,  which  he  will  spend  when  he  be- 
comes king.  Now  Mirtillo  would  save  and  increase  it. 
Is  there  no  way  to*  disinherit  Tito,  and  make  Mirtillo 
king?" 

"We  must  see  about  it,"  said  the  king,  "and,  if  we 
can't  prevent  Tito's  having  the  crown,  we  will  bury  the 
treasure  so  that  he  shan't  spend  it." 

Eveille  heard  the  courtiers  constantly  speaking  evil  of 
Tito  and  praising  Mirtillo,  in  order  to  please  the  queen; 
then  they  would  go  to  Tito  and  tell  him  how  they  had 
taken  his  part  to  the  king;  but  Tito,  to  whom  Eveille 
told  the  truth,  only  laughed  at  and  despised  them. 
There  were,  however,  four  great  noblemen  at  the  court 
who  were  men  of  honor;  these  always  took  Tito's  part, 
but  never  told  him  they  had.  On  the  contrary,  they  ad- 
vised him  to  love  his  parents  and  be  very  obedient  to  the 
king. 

About  this  time  a  neighboring  king  sent  ambassadors 
to  Guinguet  on  an  affair  of  importance.  The  queen,  ac- 
cording to  her  custom,  did  not  mean  that  Tito  should 
appear  before  these  strangers.  She  sent  him  to  a  beauti- 
ful country  house  belorging  to  the  king,  because,  she 
told  him,  the  ambassadors  might  wish  to  see  it,  and  he 
must  do  the  honors  of  it  to  them.  Then  she  prepared 
for  the  interview.  She  had  an  old  velvet  petticoat  of  her 
own  made  up  for  the  backs  of  the  robes  of  Guinguet  and 
Mirtillo;  the  fronts  were  made  of  new  velvet;  for  the 
queen  thought  that  as  the  king  andw  prince  were  seated, 
no  one  would  see  the  backs  of  their  dresses.  To  make 
them  magnificent,  she  used  the  diamonds  found  in  the 
medlars  as  buttons  for  the  king's  robe;  she  looped  up  his 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

cap  with  the  large  diamond  out  of  the  egg.  The  dia- 
monds taken  from  the  walnuts  were  employed  as  buttons 
on  Mirtillo's  collar  and  sleeves.  The  king  and  prince 
were  quite  dazzling  in  the  light  of  the  diamonds.  Guin- 
guet  and  his  wife  sat  on  their  throne,  and  Mirtillo  at 
their  feet.  But  the  ambassadors  had  hardly  entered  the 
room  before  the  large  diamond  changed  to  an  egg,  andt 
the  others  to  walnuts  and  medlars. 

The  ambassadors,  thinking  that  Guinguet  and  his  queen 
had  dressed  themselves  so  ridiculously  as  an  insult  to  their 
master,  left  the  presence  in  great  anger,  saying  that 
their  sovereign  would  soon  teach  King  Guinguet  that  h  e 
was  not  a  king  of  walnuts. 

It  was  in  vain  that  the  ministers  tried  to  explain  mat- 
ters to  them;  they  would  not  listen,  and  returned  to 
their  own  country ." 

Guinguet  and  his  wife  were  very  much  ashamed,  and 
very  angry. 

"It  is  Tito  who  has  played  us  this  trick,"  said  the 
queen.  "We  must  disinherit  him  and  leave  the  crown  to 
Mirtillo." 

"I  willingly  consent  to  do  so/'  replied  the  king. 

The  next  moment  they  heard  a  voice  say:  "If  you  are 
wicked  enough  to  do  it,  I  will  break  all  your  bones." 

The  king  and  queen  looked  at  each  other  with  surprise. 
They  could  see  no  one,  yet  some  one  spoke  close  by.  It 
was  Eveille,  who  was  watching  over  the  safety  of  his 
master. 

Meantime,  when  King  Violent  had  heard  from  his  am- 
bassadors that  Guinguet  had  turned  him  into  fun  and  in- 
sulted them,  he  declared  war  against  the  miser-king. 
Guinguet  was  dreadfully  frightened,  for  he  was  a  great 
coward;  but  the  queen  said:  "Don't  distress  yourself. 
We  will  make  Tito  commander-in-chief.  He  is  rash  and 
brave.  He  will  get  killed,  and  we  can  then  leave  the 
crown  to  Mirtillo/' 

The  king  thought  this  a  capital  plan.  He  appointed 
Tito  general  of  all  his  forces,  and  gave  him  full  power  to 
make  war  or  peace. 

Tito,  having  arrived  on  the  frontiers  of  the  kingdom, 
resolved  to  await  the  enemy  there,  and  employed  his 
troops  meanwhile  in  building  a  strong  fortress  in  a  nar- 
row pass  by  which  alone  the  country  could  be  entered. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


103 


One  day  as  he  watched  the  soldiers  at  work  he  became 
thirsty,  and,  seeing  a  house  on  a  mountain  opposite,  he 
climbed  up  it  to  ask  for  some  water.  The  master  of 
the  house,  who  was  named  Abor,  gave  him  some.  As 
the  prince  was  coming  down  the  mountain  he  saw  a  very 
pretty  peasant  girl  sitting  down  by  a  trickling  brook. 
She  had  an  expression  of  great  innocence  and  sweetness  in 


her  dark  eyes,  and  a  very  modest  manner  when  he  spoke 
to  her.  She  told  him  that  her  name  was  Biby,  and  that 
she  was  Abor's  ^daughter.  The  prince  chatted  a  long 
time  with  her,  and  after  that  day  called  frequently  at 
Abor's  house,  for  he  was  never  so  happy  as  when  talking 
to  Biby.  She  had  been  well  educated,  and  talked  well  of 
books  which  the  prince  loved,  and  he  found  all  her  senti- 
ments and  opinions  good.  She  appeared  also  to  be  a 
very  obedient  and  loving  daughter.^  So  at  last  Prince 
Tito  said  to  himself,  "If  I  were  my  own  master  I  would 
marry  Biby;  she  is  not  born  a  princess,  but  she  has  so 
many  virtues  that  she  is  worthy  to  become  a  queen." 


104  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

Every  day  he  loved  Biby  better,  and  one  day  he  wrote 
a  letter  to  her  to  tell  her  so;  but  Biby,  who  knew  that 
she  ought  not  to  have  letters  of  which  her  father  did  not 
know,  took  it  at  once  to  Abor.  When  he  had  read  it  he 
told  his  daughter  that  she  could  not  marry  a  prince;  and 
Biby  said  that  she  knew  it,  and  that  she  would  be  glad  to 
go  away  and  visit  her  aunt,  who  lived  at  some  distance;  for 
she.  loved  the  prince,  and  did  not  wish  to  make  him  do 
wrong.  Abor  sent  her  away  the  next  morning. 

Prince  Tito  was  very  sorry  when  he  found  that  she  was 
gone.  He  told  Abor  that  if  Biby  would  wait  he  would 
marry  her  and  make  her  queen  when  he  was  king,  and 
that  he  would  not  ask  to  see  her  till  he  was  crowned. 

At  that  moment  the  fairy  in  all  her  beauty  appeared  in 
the  room.  The  prince  was  very  much  surprised,  for  he 
had  seen  her  only  as  an  old  woman. 

"Prince,"  she  said,"  "I  am  the  old  dame  yon  so  kindly 
helped.  You  are  an  honorable  and  excellent  young  man, 
and  Biby  is  as  good  a  girl.  You  shall  marry  her  in  two 
years;  but  during  that  time  you  will  have  trouble.  I 
promise  you  that  I  will  pay  you  a  visit  the  first  day  of 
every  month,  and  I  will  bring  Biby  with  me." 

The  prince  was  delighted  with  this  promise,  and  de- 
termined to  gain  a  great  deal  of  glory  to  please  Biby. 

Kin^  Violent  soon  afterward  offered  him  battle,  and  a 
hard  fight  ensued.  Tito  showed  great  gallantry;  he  won 
the  day,  and  took  Violent  prisoner.  His  officers  advised 
Tito  to  seize  Violent/s  kingdom  at  once;  but  Tito  said, 
"I  will  not;  his  subjects,  who  love  him,  would  be  unhappy 
under  a  foreign  yoke,  and  there  would  be  no  peace  in  the 
kingdom.  There  would  be  continual  war.  No;  I  will 

five  Violent  his  liberty,  and  let  him  return  to  his  people. 
[e  is  generous;  he  will  become  our  friend,  and  his 
friendship  will  be  worth  more  to  us  than  his  kingdom." 
Tito  was  right;  Violent,  set  free  without  paying  a  ran- 
som, was  charmed  with  Tito's  generosity,  and  swore  eter- 
nal friendship  to  his  conqueror.  Tito  returned  victori- 
ous to  his  home,  but  was  received  by  his  father  with 
violent  reproaches.  The  king  had  expected  that  Violent 
would  have  been  made  to  pay  a  large  sum  of  money,  and 
was  furious  with  his  son  for  not  making  him  pay  it. 
Tito,  who  loved  and  respected  his  father,  was  so  grieved 
at  his  displeasure  that  he  became  ill. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIUY  TALES.  105 

One  day,  as  he  was  alone  in  bed,  forgetful  that  it  was 
the  first  day  in  the  month,  he  saw  two  pretty  canaries 
fly  in  at  the  window,  and  was  much  surprised  when  sud- 
denly they  changed  into  the  fairy  and  his  dearBiby.  He 
was  just  thanking  the  fairy  for  her  visit  when  they  heard 
steps  approaching,  and  both  became  again  canaries.  Im- 
mediately afterward  the  queen  entered,  followed  by  some 
of  her  attendants,  and  carrying  a  great  cat  in  her  arms — 
a  pet  of  hers,  because  it  cost  nothing  to  keep  and  pre- 
served the  food  from  mice.  As  soon  as  the  queen  saw 
the  canaries  she  exclaimed  that  they  ought  not  to  be  left 
loose;  they  would  spoil  the  furniture.  The  prince  said 
he  was  going  to  put  them  in  a  cage.  She  replied  that 
she  meant  to  have  them  taken  at  once,  as  she  intended 
to  eat  them  at  dinner.  The  prince,  in  despair,  besought 
her  to  spare  them  to  him.  In  vain!  The  courtiers  and 
servants  hastened  to  take  the  canaries.  A  valet  knocked 
poor  Biby  down  with  a  broom.  The  prince  sprang  from 
his  couch  to  save  her,  but  it  seemed  that  he  would  be  too 
late,  for  the  great  cat,  escaping  from  the  queen's  arms, 
was  about  to  kill  the  canary  by  a  blow  of  her  paw,  when 
the  fairy,  taking  the  form  of  a  large  dog,  sprang  on  her 
back  and  strangled  her.  Then  taking  herself  and  giving 
Biby  the  shape  of  a  little  mouse,  they  ran  into  a  small 
frole  in  the  skirting-board  and  disappeared. 

<jPhov,prince  had  fainted  in  his  agony  lest  Biby  should' 
be  Ki.li  >d;  but  the  queen  took  no  notice  of  him,  she  only 
loudly  miented  the  fate  of  her  cat.  She  hurried  back 
to  tin'?  n.ug  and  told  him  that  she  would  kill  herself  if  he 
did  not  revenge  the  death  of  her  pet';  that  Tito  was  the 
friend  of  sorcerers,  and  that  she  should  have  no  rest  un- 
less he  was  disinherited  and  the  throne  given  to  Mirfcillo. 
The  king  consented,  and  told  her  that  he  would  arrest 
the  prince  the  next  day,  and  have  him  tried  for  witch- 
craft. The  faithful  Eveille  had  made  himself  invisible 
and  followed  the  queen;  he  now  hastened  to  warn  the 
prince.  The  fright  he  had  suffered  had  quite  cured  his 
fever,  and  Tito  was  about  to  mount  his  horse  and  escape, 
when  the  fairy  again  stood  before  him. 

"I  am  tired/'  she  said,  "of  the  wickedness  of  your 
mother,  and  the  weakness  of  your  farther,  I  have  at  your 
disposal  a  large  army.  Go  and  take  the  king  and  queen 
in  their  palace,  and  put  them  in  prison  with  Mirtillo; 
then  jou  will  at  once  vascend  the  throne  and  marrj 


106  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

"Madam/*  replied  the  prince,  "you  know  that  I  love 
Biby  more  than  my  life,  but  even  the  hope  of  marrying 
her  cannot  make  me  forget  the  duty  I  owe  to  my  parents. 
I  would  rather  die  than  turn  my  arms  against  them." 

"Let  me  embrace  you/*  said  the  fairy;  "I  did  but 
make  trial  of  your  goodness.  If  you  had  accepted  my 
offer  I  would  have  given  you  up;  but  now  I  am  ever 
your  friend,  and  will  give  you  proof  of  it.  Take  the 
form  of  an  old  man,  and  in  this  shape  travel  through  your 
father's  dominions,  and  see  for  yourself  how  many  in- 
justices are  committed  on  your  poor  subjects,  so  that  you 
may  do  them  justice  when  you  become  king.  Eveille 
shall  remain  at  court  to  give  you  warning  of  all  that  hap- 
pens in  your  absence." 

The  prince  obeyed  the  fairy,  and  in  his  wanderings  saw 
things  that  made  him  shudder.  Justice  was  sold;  the 
governors  cruelly  oppressed  the  people;  the  nobles  robbed 
the  peasants,  and  all  was  done  in  the  name  of  the  king! 

At  the  end  of  two  years  Eveille  wrote  to  tell  him  that 
his  father  was  dead,  and  that  the  queen  had  tried  to  have 
his  brother  crowned,  but  that  the  four  faithful  nobles 
had  opposed  it,  knowing  from  Eveille  that  Tito  lived; 
and  the  queer.,  defeated,  had  fled  with  her  son  into  a 
province  that  she  had  persuad3d  to  revolt  from  its  alle- 
giance. 

Tito  retook  his  own  shape  and  returned  to  his  capital 
at  once,  where  he  was  gladly  received  and  acknowledged 
as  king.  Then  he  wrote  respectfully  to  his  mother,  offer- 
ing to  her  and  his  brother  a  good  income  if  she  would 
not  encourage  the  revolt.  The  queen,  who  had  assem- 
bled a  great  army,  answered  that  she  would  take  nothing 
less  than  the  crown,  which  she  would  tear  from  his  head. 
But  shortly  afterward  she  heard  that  King  Violent  had 
espoused  the  cause  of  his  friend  Tito,  and  was  advancing 
against  her  with  a  large  army,  undeterred  by  any  of  the 
considerations  that  stayed  Tito's  hand.  In  despair,  she 
then  wrote  to  her  son,  accepting  his  offer  of  an  income. 

Thus  Tito  remained  peaceful  possessor  of  the  throne. 
Shortly  afterward  he  married  Biby,  to  the  satisfaction  of 
his  subjects,  who  knew  her  goodness,  and  strewed  their 
path  with  flowers,  pleased  that  he  had  taken  a  peasant 
bride.  There  were  no  such  king  and  queen  before  or 
after  in  that  land  as  Tito  and  his  queen,  who,  taught  by 


BIBY  AND  PRINCE  TITO'S  MARRIAGE. 
(107) 


10$  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

adversity  in  their  youth,  could  feel  for  all,  and  were  ever 
ready  to  help  and  console  those  who  needed  help  or  con- 
solation. 

Tito,  as  soon  as  he  had  ascended  the  throne,  began  to 
reform  abuses,  and  re-establish  order  in  his  dominions. 
To  achieve  this  result,  he  gave  directions  that  any  who 
had  to  complain  of  injustice  were  to  come  before  him  and 
state  their  wrongs,  and  that  not  even  beggars  were  to  be 
refused  admission  to  his  presence.  "For,"  said  this  good 
prince,  "I  am  the  father  of  all  my  subjects,  poor  as  well 
as  rich."  At  first  the  courtiers  were  not  much  concerned 
at  hearing  this  discourse.  "The  king,"  they  said,  "is 
young;  this,  whim  will  not  last.  He  will  soon  tire. 
Pleasure  will  engross  him,  and  he  will  leave  the  manage- 
ment of  his  affairs  to  his  favorites." 

But  they  deceived  themselves.  Tito,  by  careful  man- 
agement of  his  time,  could  do  his  duty  perfectly,  and  yet 
find  leisure  to  partake  of  innocent  pleasure,  while  the 
punishments  inflicted  at  first  on  wrongdoers  prevented 
any  repetition  of  such  offenses. 

He  sent  ambassadors  to  King  Violent,  to  thank  him 
for  his  ready  friendship;  and  that  king  returned  answer 
that  he  should  be  delighted  to  see  Tito  again,  and  that  if 
he  (Tito)  would  go  to  the  borders  of  his  kingdom,  Vio- 
lent would  meet  him  there.  As  all  was  tranquil  through- 
out his  dominions,  Tito  willingly  consented,  for  the  pro- 
ject was  favorable  to  one  he  had  previously  formed — that 
was  to  embellish  the  small  dwelling  in  which  he  had  seen 
his  beloved  Biby  for  the  first  time.  With  this  intention 
he  ordered  his  officers  to  buy  all  the  land  surrounding  it, 
but  they  were  not  to  compel  anyone  to  sell  his  property, 
for  every  one,  Tito  said,  ought  to  be  master  of  even  the 
smallest  heritage. 

Violent  arrived  on  the  frontier,  and  the  two  courts 
were  united,  and  became  very  brilliant.  Violent  had 
brought  his  only  daughter  with  him.  Elise,  so  she  was 
named,  was  as  beautiful  as  Biby,  and  almost  as  good. 
Tito  had  brought  with  him  not  only  his  wife,  but  also 
one  of  his  cousins,  named  Blanche,  who  was  not  only  fair 
and  gentle,  but  also  very  witty.  As  they  were  ruralizing 
the  two  kings  declared  that  they  would  c£st  aside  the 
etiquette  of  courts,  and  live  on  equal  terms  with  their 
subjects;  that  the  nobles  and  ladies  should  sup  with  the 


OLD,  OLD  FAIh  T  TALES.  100 

two  kings  and  the  princesses,  and  that  no  one  should 
address  the  kings  as  "your  majesty."  If  they  did  so, 
they  were  to  forfeit  a  guinea. 

It  was  their  first  supper  in  the  country,  and  they  had 
not  been  seated  at  table  above  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  when 
a  very  shabby  little  old  woman  appeared  in  the  room. 
Tito  and  Eveille,  who  at  once  recognized  her,  rose  to 
greet  her,  but  by  a  warning  glance  she  told  them  that 
she  wished  to  remain  unknown.  They  therefore  simply 
presented  her  to  Violent  as  one  of  their  best  friends,  who 
had  come  to  ask  them  for  some  supper,  and  Violent 
bowed  courteously. 

The  old  dame  without  ceremony,  however,  at  once 
placed  herself  in  an  armchair  close  to  Violent's,  which 
no  one  had  dared  to  take  before  from  respect  to  the  king. 
As  she  seated  herself  she  said  to  the  prince,  "As  our 
friends'  friends  are  our  friends,  I  am  sure  you  will  wish 
me  to  be  at  my  ease  with  you."  Violent,  who  was  by 
nature  very  haughty,  was  embarrassed  by  the  familiarity 
of  the  old  woman ;  but  he  concealed  his  annoyance.  They 
had  told  the  old  lady  of  the  fine  for  styling  the  kings 
"your  majesty,"  but  she  was  hardly  seated  before  she 
said  to  Violent,  "Your  majesty  appears  surprised  at  the 
liberty  I  take,  but  it  is  my  habit,  and  I  am  too  old  to  be 
cured  of  it  now;  therefore  your  majesty  will  pardon  me." 

"A  forfeit!"  cried  Violent.     "You  owe  two  guineas." 

"Do  not  distress  yourself,  your  majesty,"  said  the  old 
woman;  "I  had  forgotten  that  we  must  not  say  'your 
majesty;'  but  your  majesty  forgets  that  in  forbidding 
people  to  say  'your  majesty,'  you  impose  anotherikind  of 
restraint  on  them.  They  must  always  be  thinking  of 
how  to  avoid  using  the  common  form  of  respect.  How- 
ever, I  now  owe  you  six  guineas,  and  here  they  are." 

And  she  took  out  a  worn  old  purse,  and  threw  six 
guineas  on  the  table.  Violent  began  to  get  angry,  but 
out  of  consideration  for  Tito  he  restrained  himself,  and 
said  playfully: 

"Well,  my  good  mother,  do  as  you  please;  whether 
you  address  me  as  'majesty'  or  not,  I  am  not  less  your 
friend." 

"I  quite  believe  you,"  said  the  old  woman.  "That  is 
why  I  took  the  liberty  of  speaking  my  mind  to  you.  I 
shall  do  so  whenever  there  is  occasion,  for  one  cannot  do 


110  OLD,  OLD  FATRT  TALES. 

a  greater  service  to  one's  friends  than  to  tell  them  when 
they  are  in  error." 

"But  you  must  not  rely  on  my  patience,"  replied  Vio- 
lent. "There  are  times  when  I  do  not  choose  to  receive 
correction." 

"Acknowledge,  my  prince,"  said  the  old  woman,  "that 
you  are  not  far  oif  one  of  those  times  at  present,  and 
that  you  would  give  anything  to  get  rid  of  me.  Such 
are  our  heroes.  They  would  scorn  to  show  a  lack  of 
courage  in  face  of  the  enemy,  or  to  yield  a  battle  without 
a  brave  struggle;  but  they  own  calmly  that  they  cannot 
control  their  anger,  as  if  it  were  not  more  shameful  to 
yield  to  a  passion  than  to  an  enemy  whom  it  is  sometimes 
impossible  to  overcome.  But  let  us  change  the  conversa- 
tion, since  it  is  not  agreeable  to  you,  and  allow  my  pages 
to  enter;  they  have  some  gifts  to  bestow  on  the  com- 
pany." 

At  the  same  instant  the  old  woman  struck  the  table, 
and  there  entered  by  the  four  open  windows  four  beauti- 
ful winged  infants.  Each  of  them  carried  a  basketful  of 
jewels  of  astonishing  richness.  The  king  at  the  same 
moment  casting  his  eyes  on  the  old  woman,  was  surprised 
to  see  that  she  had  changed  into  a  lovely  lady,  so  richly 
dressed  that  she  dazzled  the  eyes. 

"Ah,  madam,"  he  exclaimed,  "I  recognize  you  now  as 
the  fairy  whose  medlars  and  nuts  cost  a  war.  Pardon  the 
little  respect  I  have  shown  you,  for  I  had  not  the  honor 
of  knowing  who  it  was  that  sat  beside  me." 

"That  should  show  you,"  said  the  fairy,  "that  you 
are  bound  to  be  courteous  and  attentive  to  all  guests  at 
your  own  table.  But,  my  prince,  to  show  you  that  I'm 
not  offended,  I  wish  to  make  you  two  presents.  The  first 
is  this  goblet — it  is  made  of  a  single  diamond;  but  it  is 
not  that  alone  which  renders  it  precious.  Every  time 
that  you  are  tempted  to  fly  in  a  passion,  fill  this  goblet 
with  water,  and  drink  it  three  times,  and  you  will  find 
your  anger  give  way  to  reason,  If  you  profit  by  this 
gift  you  will  have  rendered  yourself  worthy  of  the  sec- 
ond. I  know  that  you  love  the  Princess  Blanche;  she 
likes  you,  but  fears  your  temper,  and  will  only  marry  you 
if  you  will  promise  to  use  this  goblet." 

Violent,  surprised  that  the  fairy  should  know  his  faults 
and  inclinations  so  thoroughly,  acknowledged  that  he 


OLD,  OLD  FATRY  TALES.  HI 

loved  Blanche;  but  he  added:  "There  is  an  obstacle 
which  opposes  pur  union,  even  if  I  could  obtain  Blanche's 
consent  to  it;  it  will  always  be  a  pain  to  me  to  marry, 
for  fear  of  depriving  my  daughter  of  a  crown." 

"That  is  a  generous  feeling,"  said  the  fairy;  "there 
are  few  fathers  to  be  found  capable  of  sacrificing  their 
inclinations  to  the  happiness  of  their  children;  but  that 
need  not  prevent  your  marriage.  The  King  of  Mogolan, 
who  was  one  of  my  friends.,  has  just  died  childless,  and 
by  my  advice  he  has  left  his  kingdom  to  Eveille.  Eveille 
is  not  a  prince  by  birth,  but  he  deserves  to  become  one. 
He  loves  the  Princess  Elise,  and  she  is  worthy  to  become 
the  recompense  of  his  fidelity.  If  her  father  consents  I 
feel  sure  that  she  will  accept  him  without  repugnance." 

Elise  blushed  at  this  speech.  It  is  true  that  she  thought 
Eveille  very  amiable,  and  that  she  had  listened  with 
pleasure  and  admiration  to  the  story  of  his  fidelity  to  his 
master. 

"Madam,"  said  Violent,  "we  have  taken  to  speaking 
frankly.  I  esteem  Eveille,  and  if  the  custom  of  my 
country  did  not  tie  my  hands,  I  should  not  require  a 
crown  for  him  to  give  him  my  daughter.  But  men,  and, 
above  all,  kings,  should  be  bound  by  that  which  is  due  to 
their  rank;  and  it  is  not  the  habit  of  royal  fathers  to  give 
their  daughters  to  simple  gentlemen:  I  should  act  con- 
trary to  all  the  traditions  of  my  house  if  I  married  mine 
to  one.  Elise  is  descended  from  one  of  the  most  ancient 
families  in  the  world.  You  know  that  for  three  hundred 
years  we  have  occupied  the  throne." 

"My  prince,"  said  the  fairy,  :'you  are  ignorant  of  the 
fact  that  the  family  of  Eveille  is  as  ancient  as  your  own; 
for  you  are  relatives,  and  descend  from  two  brothers. 
In  fact,  Eveille  has  the  precedence,  for  he  descends  from 
the  elder  brother,  and  your  father  from  the  younger." 

"If  you  can  prove  that/'  said  King  Violent,  "I  swear 
to  give  my  daughter  to  Eveille,  even  if  the  subjects  of 
the  late  King  Mogolan  should  refuse  to  recognize  him  as 
their  sovereign." 

"Nothing  is  easier,"  said  the  fairy,  "than  to  prove  the 
antiquity  of  Eveille's  family.  He  is  descended  from  the 
eldest  of  the  sons  of  Japhet,  the  soa  of  Noah,  who  estab- 
lished himself  in  the  Peloponnesus.  You  are  descended 
from  the  second  son  of  Japhet." 


112  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

Everybody  felt  inclined  to  laugh  at  this  mockery;  but 
Violent  flushed  with  anger,  and  was  about  to  speak, 
when  the  Princess  Blanche,  who  was  at  his  side,  pre- 
sented the  diamond  goblet  to  him;  he  drank  of  it  three 
times  as  the  fairy  directed  him,  and  during  the  interval 
he  reflected  that  it  was  quite  true  that  all  had  descended 
from  Noah,  and  that  the  only  difference  between  those 
descendants  proceeded  from  their  characters.  Having 
emptied  his  goblet,  he  said  to  the  fairy: 

"I  thank  you,  madam,  for  having  cured  me  of  two 
great  defects:  my  pride  of  birth,  and  my  habit  of  pas- 
sionate anger.  I  admire  the  virtue  of  the  goblet,  for 
while  I  drank  my  anger  was  calmed,  and  my  reflections 
between  the  three  draughts  have  completed  the  task  of 
recalling  me  to  reason." 

"I  will  not  deceive  you,"  replied  the  fairy;  "there  is 
no  magic  in  the  diamond  goblet.  I  will  tell  you  in  what 
the  sorcery  of  the  water  consists.  It  gives  time  for  re- 
flection; and  no  one  who  pauses  to  reflect  can  become 
the  slave  of  anger." 

"In  truth,  madam,"  said  Violent,  "I  have  learned 
more  to-day  than  in  my  whole  previous  life.  Happy 
Tito!  You  will  become  the  greatest  king  in  the  world 
under  such  a  protectress.  I  beseech  you  to  use  your  in- 
fluence with  this  lady  to  induce  her  to  become  my  friend." 

"Have  1  not  given  you  proofs  that  I  am  your  friend?" 
said  the  fairy.  "At  present  let  us  think  only  of  your 
marriage,  and  of  that  of  the  Princess  Elise. " 

At  this  moment  a  servant  informed  Tito  that  the 
officers  he  had  sent  to  buy  Biby's  old  home  and  the  ad- 
joining lands  wished  to  speak  to  him.  He  commanded 
them  to  be  admitted.  They  entered,  bringing  with  them 
the  design  of  the  estate  that  Tito  had  given  them.  They 
had  added  to  the  cottage  a  large  garden  and  a  great 
park,  which  would  be  perfect  if  they  could  remove  a 
little  house  which  was  exactly  in  the  middle  of  the  finest 
avenue,  and  completely  spoiled  the  effect  of  it. 

"And  why  have  you  not  pulled  it  down?"  asked  King 
Violent. 

"Sire,"  replied  the  officers,  "our  king  has  forbidden  us 
to  do  violence  to  any  man,  and  the  owner  of  this  small 
dwelling  will  not  sell  it,  though  we  have  offered  for  it 
four  times  as  much  as  it  is  worth." 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  113 

"If  that  insolent  fellow  were  my  subject  I  would  hang 
him/'  said  Violent. 

"You  would  first  empty  your  goblet,"  said  the  fairy. 

"I  think  even  the  goblet  would  not  save  his  life,"  re- 
plied Violent;  "is  it  not  horrible  that  a  king  should  not 
be  master  of  his  own  estates,  and  that  he  should  be 
obliged  to  abandon  a  work  he  desires  to  finish  through 
the  obstinacy  of  a  man  who  ought  to  be  too  happy  to 
make  his  fortune  by  obliging  his  master?" 

"But  I  shall  not  abandon  my  design,"  said  Tito,  laugh- 
ing. "I  shall  make  that  house  the  chief  ornament  of  my 
park." 

"Oh,  how  can  you?"  asked  Violent;  "placed  as  it  is, 
it  will  spoil  the  park." 

"This  is  what  I  shall  do,"  replied  Tito:  "I  shall  build 
round  the  house  a  wall  sufficiently  high  to  prevent  this 
man  from  entering  my  park,  but  not  so  high  as  to  shut 
out  his  view,  for  it  would  not  be  just  to  shut  him  up  in  a 
prison.  This  wail  will  continue  on  both  sides,  and  there 
will  be  read  on  it  these  words  in  letters  of  gold:  'A  king 
who  built  this  wall  prefers  leaving  it,  and  the  cot  it  in- 
closes, to  spoil  his  park,  rather  than  commit  an  injustice 
on  one  of  his  subjects  by  taking  from  him  by  force  the 
heritage  of  his  fathers.' ' 

"Everything  I  hear  amazes  me, "said  Violent;  "I  con- 
fess I  had  very  little  idea  of  the  virtues  which  form  heroic 
men.  Yes,  Tito;  that  wall  will  be  the  ornament  of  your 
park,  and  your  good  action  will  be  the  ornament  of 
your  life.  But,  madam,"  to  the  fairy,  "how  is  it  that 
Tito  possesses  naturally  such  great  virtues?" 

"Great  king,"  said  the  fairy,  "Tito  was  brought  up  by 
parents  who  detested  him.  He  was  subject  to  perpetual 
contradiction;  he  had  to  submit  and  give  up  his  own  will 
to  that  of  others,  even  in  things  indifferent;  and  as,  dur- 
ing the  late  king's  life,  he  had  neither  wealth  nor  influ- 
ence, courtiers  and  flatterers  did  not  deign  to  spoil  him; 
they  would  have  gained  nothing  by  it.  They  gave  him 
up  to  the  honest  people  who  loved  him  for  himself  alone, 
and  from  them  he  learned  that  a  king  is  free  to  do  good, 
but  should  have  his  hands  tied  when  he  would  do  harm. 
You,  who  became  king  at  twelve  ySars  old,  never  under- 
went this  discipline,  or  any  other.  Your  guardians  only 
looked  to  your  future  favor,  and  never  corrected  your 


114  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

faults.     They  called   your  pride  proper  dignity,  your 
violence  vivacity,  and  thus  they  spoiled  you." 

Violent,  convinced  of  the  truth  of  what  the  fairy  told 
him,  and  instructed  by  her  in  his  duties,  endeavored  to 
fulfill  them,  and  to  conquer  his  faults.  He  was  encour- 
aged in  his  efforts  by  his  wife  Blanche;  by  Eveilie,  who 
became  his  son-in-law;  and  by  Tito,  who  preserved  on 
the  throne  the  virtues  he  had  learned  in  the  days  of 
adversity. 


PKINCE  FATAL  AND  PRINCE  FORTUNE. 

THERE  was  a  queen  who  had  two  sweet,  pretty  little 
boys;  and  a  fairy  who  was  the  queen's  intimate  friend 
was  invited  to  stand  godmother  to  them,  and  make  them 
some  gift.  "I  endow  the  eldest/'  said  she,  "with  all 
manner  of  misfortunes  till  he  is  twenty-five;  and  I  name' 
him  Fatal."  At  these  words  the  queen  gave  a  loud  cry, 
and  entreated  the  fairy  to  change  her  gift.  "You  do 
not  know  what  you  ask,"  said  she  to  the  queen;  "if  he 
does  not  meet  with  misfortunes  he  will  be  wicked." 

The  queen  durst  say  no  more,  but  begged  the  fairy  to 
let  her  choose  for  her  second  son.  "Perhaps  you  will 
choose  wrong,"  replied  the  fairy;  "but  no  matter,  I  am 
willing  to  grant  whatever  you  ask  me  for  him." 

"I  wish,"  said  the  queen,  "that  he  may  succeed  in 
whatever  he  undertakes — 'tis  the  way  for  him  to  be  per- 
fect." 

"Perhaps  you  may  be  mistaken,"  said  the  fairy,  "and 
for  that  reason  I  grant  him  this  gift  no  longer  than  till 
he  is  twenty-five." 

Nurses  were  provided  for  the  two  young  princes;  but 
the  very  third  day  the  nurse  of  the  eldest  prince  was 
taken  ill  of  a  fever;  he  had  another,  and  she  fell  down 
and  broke  his  leg;  a  third  became  ill,  and  it  being  spread 
abroad  that  Prince  Fatal  was  unfortunate  to  his  nurses, 
nobody  would  nurse  him,  or  so  much  as  come  near  him. 
The  poor  child  was  hungry,  and  cried,  but  met  with 
no  pity;  at  last  a  mean,  homely  countrywoman,  who  was 
very  poor,  and  had  a  large  family  of  children,  which  she 
could  scarcely  maintain,  came  and  offered  to  bring  him 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  Hf. 

up,  provided  they  would  give  her  a  large  sum  of  mor 
and  as  the  king  and  queen  did  not  love  Prince  Fa 
they  gave  her  what  she  asked,  and  bade  her  take  him 
home   to   her  village.     The   youngest   prince,  who  was 
named  Fortune,  on  the  contrary,  throve  surprisingly:  hit 
father  and  mother  doted  upon  him,  and  never  thought  of 
the  eldest.     The  wicked  woman  to  whom  they  had  given 

Eoor  Fatal  no  sooner  reached  home  than  she  took  off  his 
ne  swaddling-clothes,  to  bestow  them  on  a  son  of  her 
own  about  FataPs  age;  and  having  wrapped  the  poor 
prince  in  an  old  petticoat,  she  carried  him  into  a  wood, 
and  left  him  to  be  devoured  by  the  wild  beasts;  but  a 
lioness,  that  had  three  young  whelps,  brought  him  into 
her  den,  and  gave  him  suck;  which  made  him  grow  so 
fast  and  strong  that  at  six  months  he  could  run  alone. 
In  the  meantime  the  nurse's  son,  whom  she  passed  for 
the  prince,  died,  and  the  king  and  queen  were  glad  they 
had  got  rid  of  him.  Fatal  remained  in  the  woods  till  he 
was  two  years  old;  when  a  nobleman,  an  officer  of  the 
court,  as  he  was  hunting,  was  astonished  to  find  a  lovely 
boy  in  the  midst  of  wild  beasts.  He  was  moved  to  pity, 
took  him  home,  and  hearing  that  a  child  was  wanted  as 
a  companion  to  play  with  Prince  Fortune,  he  presented 
Fatal  to  the  queen. 

Fortune  had  a  master  to  teach  him  to  read;  but  this 
master  was  charged,  above  all  things,  not  to  make  him 
cry.  The  young  prince  heard  this,  and  cried  every  time 
he  took  his  book  in  hand — so  that  at  five  years  of  age  he 
could  hardly  tell  his  letters;  while  Fatal,  on  the  contrary, 
read  perfectly  well,  and  had  already  made  some  progress 
in  writing.  To  frighten  the  prince,  his  master  was 
ordered  to  whi]D  Fatal  whenever  Fortune  neglected  his 
lesson;  so  that  it  was  in  vain  for  Fatal  to  be  good,  and 
apply  higiself  to  his  book — he  could  not  escape  punish- 
ment: besides,  Fortune  was  so  ill-nature*d  and  "willful 
that  he  used  his  brother  very  ill,  though,  indeed,  he  did 
not  know  he  was  his  brother.  If  Fatal  had  an  apple,  or 
plaything,  Fortune  would  snatch  it  away.  He  obliged 
him  to  be  silent  when  he  wanted  to  speak,  and  would 
make  him  talk  when  he  wished  to  hold  his  tongue;  in  a 
word,  Fatal  was  a  little  martyr,  and*  pitied  by  no  one. 
And  the  prince  and  his  small  courtiers  ridiculed  him  for 
his  love  of  study. 


116 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


They  lived  together  in  this  manner  till  their  eleventh 
year,  when  the  queen  was  amazed  at  her  son's  ignorance. 

''Certainly/'  said  she,  "the  fairy  has  deceived  me.  I 
imagined  my  son  would  the  most  learned  that  ever  was, 
since  I  wished  him  to  succeed  in  whatever  he  under- 


took."    Accordingly  she  went  to  consult  the  fairy  about 
the  matter,  who  said  to  her: 

"Madam,  you  should  have  desired  a  willing  mind  and 
virtuous  inclinations  for  your  son,  rather  than  great 
talents;  all  his  endeavors  are  to  be  wicked,  and  your 
majesty  is  a  witness  of  the  great  progress  he  has  made." 
After  having  said  this,  she  turned  from  her,  and  the  poor 
queen  returned  to  her  palace  in  the  utmost  affliction. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIR7  TALES. 


117 


She  hastened  to  reprove  Fortune,  in  order  to  make  him 
better;  but  instead  of  promising  amendment,  he  told  her 
that,  if  they  vexed  him,  he  would  starve  himself.  The 


queen  at  this,  frightened  out  of  her  senses,  took  him 
upon  her  knee,  kissed  him,  gave  him  sweetmeats,  and 
assured  him  that  he  should  not  learn  anything  for  a 
whole  week,  if  he  would  eat  his  dinner  as  usual. 

All  this  time  Fatal  improved  so  much  that  he  was  quite 


118 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


a  wonder  of  learning  and  mildness  of  temper:  he  had 
been  so  used  to  be  contradicted  that,  in  a  manner,  he  had 
no  will  of  his  own;  and  he  thought  himself  happy  if  he 
could  but  prevent  the  ill  effects  of  Fortune's  capricious 
humors;  but  this  sad  child,  enraged  to  see  that  Fatal  im- 
proved more  than  himself,  could  not  bear  the  sight  of 
him,  and  the  tutors,  to  please  their  young  master,  beat 
poor  Fatal  every  moment.  At  last  this  wicked  boy  told 


the  queen  that  he  would  not  have  Fatal  live  with  him 
any  longer,  and  that  he  would  not  eat  a  morsel  till  he 
was  sent  away;  so  that  poor  Fatal  was  turned  into  the 
street,  no  one  daring  to  take  him  in  for  fear  of  displeas- 
ing the  prince. 

He  passed  the  night  under  a  tree,  half-dead  with  cold 
(as  it  was  winter),  with  only  a  morsel  of  bread  for.  his 
supper,  which  some  good  person  or  other  had  given  him 
out  of  charity.  As  soon  as  it  was  daylight  he  said  to 
himself,  "I  will  not  stay  here  doing  nothing,  but  try  if  I 
cannot  get  my  living  till  I  am  big  enough  to  be  a  soldier. 
I  remember  to  have  read,  in  history,  of  several  private 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

soldiers  who  have  afterward  been  made  great  generals; 
and,  perhaps,  if  I  behave  well,  I  may  have  the  same 
good  fortune.  'Tis  true  I  have  neither  father  nor 
mother;  but  God  Himself  is  the  Father  of  orphans,  and 
He  that  gave  me  a  lioness  for  my  nurse  will  surely  not 
forsake  me  now."  Having  said  this  Fatal  kneeled  down 
to  say  his  prayers,  for  he  never  missed  saying  them  night 
or  morning,  and  always,  when  he  prayed,  he  fixed  his 
eyes  on  the  ground,  with  his  hands  lifted  up  and  joined 
together,  and  neither  turned  his  head  this  way  nor  the 
other. 

While  Fatal  was  on  his  knees  a  countryman  chanced 
to  be  going  by;  and  seeing  him  pray  so  earnestly,  said  to 
himself,  "I  am  sure  this  must  be  a  good  child;  I  have  a 
great  mind  to  have  him  to  take  care  of  my  sheep,  and 
God  will  bless  me  for  his  sake."  So  he  waited  till  Fatal 
had  ended  his  prayer,  and  then  said  to  him:  "Little 
boy,  will  you  come  and  live  with  me,  and  mind  my  sheep? 
I  will  keep  you,  and  take  care  of  you." 

"With  all  my  heart,"  said  Fatal,  "and  I  will  do  all  in 
my  power  to  serve  you  honestly." 

This  countryman  was  a  wealthy  farmer,  and  had  a 
great  many  servants,  who  wronged  their  master;  and, 
indeed,  so  did  his  wife  and  children. 

They  were  mightily  pleased  when  they  saw  Fatal. 
"For,"  said  they,  "this  is  but  a  child,  and  we  can  do 
whatever  we  will  with  him."  But  Fatal  kept  the  sheep 
faithfully,  and  proved  a  good  little  shepherd. 

One  day  the  farmer's  wife  said  to  him:  "Child,  my 
husband  is  a  miser,  and  never  gives  me  any  money;  let 
me  take  a  sheep,  and  you  shall  tell  him  the  wolf  ran  away 
with  it." 

"Madam,"  replied  Fatal,  "I  would  with  all  my  heart 
do  anything  to  serve  you,  but  I  had  rather  die  than  be  a 
thief  and  a  liar." 

"You  are  a  fool,"  said  she;  "who  will  know  it?" 

"Oh,  madam,"  Fatal  answered,  "God  will  know  it; 
for  He  sees  whatever  we  do,  and  punishes  those  that  lie. 
and  steal." 

At  these  words  his  mistress  lost  all^patience;  she  flew 
upon  him,  beat  him,  and  tore  the  hair  off  his  head.  The 
farmer,  hearing  Fatal  cry,  came  and  asked  his  wife  what 
made  her  beat  him  in  that  manner.  "Why,  truly,"  said 


ISO  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

she,  "because  he  is  a  glutton:  the  little  greedy  fellow  has 
this  morning  eaten  up  a  pot  of  cream  which  I  was  going 
to  carry  to  market." 

"Oh,  fie,"  said  the  farmer,  "I  cannot  bear  greedy  peo- 
ple;" and  immediately  he  called  one  of  his  servants,  and 
ordered  him  to  whip  Fatal:  and  all  that  the  poor  boy 
could  say  to  justify  himself  signified  nothing;  his  mis- 
tress insisted  that  she  saw  him  eat  the  cream — and  she 
was  believed.  After  this  he  was  sent  into  the  fields  to 
tend  the  sheep  again,  and  his  mistress  went  to  him,  and 
said:  "Well!  will  you  give  me  one  of  the  sheep  now?" 

"No,  indeed,"  replied  Fatal;  "I  should  be  very  sorry 
to  do  any  such  thing;  you  may  use  me  as  you  please,  but 
you  shall  never  make  me  be  guilty  of  an  untruth.'7 

So,  finding  him  resolute,  this  wicked  woman,  out  of 
revenge,  set  all  the  other  servants  against  him;  they 
made  him  stay  out  late  in  the  fields,  and  instead  of  giv- 
ing him  food  like  the  rest,  she  only  sent  him  bread  and 
water,  and,  when  he  came  home,  laid  to  his  charge  all  the 
mischief  that  was  done  in  the  family. 

He  stayed  a  year  at  the  farmer's;  and  though  he  lay 
on  the  ground,  and  was  but  very  indifferently  fed,  yet  he 
grew  so  strong  and  tall  that  at  thirteen  years  of  age  any 
one  would  have  supposed  him  to  be  fifteen:  besides,  he 
was  so  patient  that  he  bore  all  their  ill-usage  with  the  ut- 
most calmness  and  meekness.  One  day,  while  he  was  at 
the  farm,  he  heajd  that  the  king  of  a  neighboring  coun- 
try was  at  war,  and  wanted  soldiers.  Fatal  went  and 
asked  his  master  to  let  him  go;  and  having  got  leave,  he 
traveled  on  foot  to  this  prince's  territories,  where  he  en- 
listed himself  under  a  captain  who,  though  he  was  a 
great  nobleman,  behaved  more  like  a  porter  or  a  drayman 
than  a  person  of  quality;  he  swore,  beat  his  soldiers,  and 
cheated  them  of  their  pay — and  with  this  officer  Fatal 
was  more  miserable  than  at  the  farmer's.  He  had  en- 
gaged for  ten  years;  and  though  he  saw  the  greatest 
number  of  his  comrades  desert,  yet  he  would  never  follow 
their  example.  "For,"  said  he,  "I  have  received  money 
to  serve  ten  years,  and  it  would  be  wronging  the  king  to 
go  away  before  my  time  is  expired."  Notwithstanding 
this  the  captain,  who  was  a  bad  man,  used  Fatal  no  bet- 
ter than  the  rest,  yet  he  could  not  help  esteeming  him, 
because  he  saw  that  he  always  did  his  duty;  and  he  would 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  121 

send  him  on  his  messages,  and  intrust  him  with  money, 
and  give  him  the  key  of  his  room  whenever  he  dined 
abroad,  or  went  into  the  country;  and  though  he  did  not 
love  reading,  he  had  a  large  library,  to  make  people  be- 
lieve he  was  a  man  of  sense  and  learning;  for  in  that 
country  they  despised  an  ignorant  officer,  and  looked  upon 
ouch  as  did  not  know  something  of  books,  or  at  least  of 
history,  as  u*ifit  for  any  military  station  of  importance. 

When  Fatal  had  done  his  duty  as  a  soldier,  instead  of 
going  to  gamble  and  drink  with  his  comrades,  he  would 
lock  himself  up  in  the  captain's  room,  and  there  endeavor 
to  learn  his  profession,  by  reading  the  lives  of  great  men, 
till  at  last  he  became  capable  of  commanding  an  army. 

He  had  been  seven  years  enlisted,  when  his  regiment 
was  ordered  to  the  field:  his  captain  took  him  and  six 
others,  and  went  to  reconnoiter  a  wood;  and  when  they 
were  in  the  midst  of  it,  the  soldiers  said  one  to  another: 
"Let  us  kill  this  wicked  fellow,  who  is  always  caning  us, 
and  cheats  us  of  our  pay."  Fatal  represented  the  base- 
ness of  such  an  action,  and  dissuaded  them  from  it;  but 
instead  of  hearkening  to  him,  they  said  they  would  kill 
him  and  the  captain  too,  and  immediately  drew  their 
swords.  Fatal  placed  himself  before  the  captain,  and 
fought  with  so  much  bravery  that  he  alone  slew  four  of 
the  soldiers.  His  captain,  -seeing  he  owed  his  life  to 
Fatal,  asked  his  pardon  for  all  the  .wrong  he  had  done 
him;  and  having  informed  the  king  of  what  had  hap- 
pened, Fatal  was  made  a  captain,  and  the  king  gave  him 
a  considerable  pension. 

Now,  none  of  the  soldiers  ever  wanted  to  kill  Fatal;  he 
loved  them  as  if  they  were  his  children,  and  they  had 
the  same  affection  for  him  as  for  a  father:  instead  of  de- 
frauding them  of  their  pay,  he  gave  them  money  out  of 
his  own  pocket,  to  encourage  them  when  they  behaved 
well;  was  careful  and  tender  of  them  when  they  were 
sick  or  wounded;  and  never  found  fault  with  them  out  of 
caprice  or  ill-humor.  About  that  time  a  great  battle  was 
fought,  and  the  commander-in-chief  being  slain,  all  the 
officers  and  soldiers  fled;  but  Fatal  cried  out  that  he  had 
rather  die  fighting  than  fly  meanly  like  a  coward;  and 
his  soldiers  told  him  they  would  not  forsake  him;  and 
their  example  had  so  good  an  effect  with  the  others  that 
they  all  came  back,  ranged  themselves  round  Fatal,  and 


laa  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

fought  with  such  success  that  the  son  of  the  king  of  their 
enemies  was  taken  prisoner.  The  other  king  was  greatly 
rejoiced  when  he  heard  that  he  h  ,d  gained  the  victory, 
and  told  Fatal  that  he  made  him  general  of  all  his  armies. 
Afterward  he  presented  him  to  the  queen,  and  to  the 
princess  his  daughter,  who  gave  him  their  hands  to  kiss; 
but  at  sight  of  the  princess  Fatal  was  struck  motionless 
like  a  statue:  she  was  so  beautiful  that  he  fell  in  love 
with  her  to  distraction;  and  then  he  was  unhappy  in- 
deed, for  he  thought  that  such  a  one  as  he  could  have 
no  hope  of  marrying  a  great  princess:  he  resolved,  for 
that  reason,  to  conceal  his  affection,  and  daily  underwent 
the  utmost  torture.  But  it  was  much  worse  when  he 
was  informed  that  Fortune  was  also  in  love  with  the 
Princess  Graciosa  (for  that  was  her  name),  having  seen 
her  picture,  and  that  an  ambassador  had  arrived  to  ask 
her  in  marriage.  Fatal  was  ready  to  die  with  grief;  but 
the  Princess  Graciosa,  who  knew  that  Fortune  was  a  base 
and  wicked  prince,  entreated  her  father  with  such  ear- 
nestness, not  to  force  her  to  the  match  that  the  ambas- 
sador was  told  the  princess  did  not  choose  to  marry  yet. 
Fortune,  who  had  never  been  used  to  be  contradicted, 
fell  into  a  most  violent  passion  when  they  returned  with 
the  princess'  answer;  and  his  father,  who  could  not  deny 
him  anything,  declared  war  against  the  father  of  Gra- 
ciosa. But  he  was  not  much  concerned  about  it.  "For," 
said  he,  "while  Fatal  is  at  the  head  of  my  army,  I  am  not 
at  all  afraid  of  being  overcome."  So,  having  sent  for  his 
general,  he  told  him  the  affair,  and  bid  him  prepare  for 
war.  Fatal,  at  this,  threw  himself  at  his  feet,  and  said 
that  he  was  born  in  the  dominions  of  Prince  Fortune's 
father,  and  could  not  take  up  arms  against  his  sovereign. 
But  the  king  was  very  angry,  and  threatened  to  put  him 
to  death  if  he  refused  to  obey  him;  and,  on  the  contrary, 
promised  to  give  him  his  daughter  in  marriage  if  he  de- 
feated Fortune.  This  was  a  sad  temptation  to  poor 
Fatal.  However,  at  last  he  resolved  to  do  his  duty;  and 
therefore,  without  saying  anything  to  the  king,  he  quitted 
the  court,  and  forsook  all  his  riches  and  great  expecta- 
tions. 

Fortune  soon  after  put  himself  at  the  head  of  the 
army,  and  took  the  field;  but  before  five  days  were  at  an 
end  he  fell  ill  with  fatigue,  for  he  was  very  delicate  and 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  123 

tender;  and  having  never  been  used  to  any  hardships,  or 
to  take  any  exercise,  he  could  not  bear  heat  and  cold;  in 
short,  everything  made  him  ill. 

About  this  time  the  ambassador  who  had  been  sent  to 
demand  Graciosa  for  Fortune,  in  order  to  make  his  court 
to  the  prince,  told  him  that  he  had  seen  the  little  boy 
who  had  been  turned  out  of  his  palace  at  the  court  of 
Graciosa's  father,  and  that  it  was  generally  reported  he 


had  promised  him  his  daughter  in  marriage.  Fortune, 
at  this  piece  of  intelligence,  fell  into  a  most  terrible  fit 
of  passion;  and  as  soon  as  he  was  recovered  he  set  out, 
fully  resolved  to  dethrone  the  father  of  Graciosa,  and  he 
promised  a  great  reward  to  whoever  should  take  Fatal, 
either  dead  or  alive.  Fortune  gained  several  great  vic- 
tories, though  he  did  not  fight  himself — for  he  was  afraid 
of  being  killed — but  he  had  able  and  experienced  com- 
manders. At  last  he  besieged  the  capital  of  the  enemy, 
and  was  preparing  to  take  it  by  storm,  when,  on  the  eve 
of  the  intended  assault,  Fatal  was  brought  before  him 
(for  great  numbers  of  people  had  been  sent  in  search  of 
him),  bound  in  heavy  chains.  Forttfne  rejoiced  at  this 
opportunity  of  exercising  his  revenge,  and  gave  orders 
for  him  to  be  beheaded  before  they  storme'd  the  town,  in 


124  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

sight  of  the  enemy.  That  very  day  he  gave  a  grand  en- 
tertainment to  his  officers,  to  celebrate  his  birthday,  the 
twenty-five  years  being  now  complete.  The  besieged, 
hearing  Fatal  was  taken,  and  was  to  have  his  head  struck 
off  in  an  hour,  resolved  to  deliver  him  or  perish,  for  they 
remembered  how.kind  he  had  been  to  them  while  he  was 
their  general:  they  asked  the  king's  leave  to  sally  out, 
and  were  victorious.  Fortune's  gift  of  prosperity  was 
now  over,  and  in  his  flight  from  the  enemy  he  was  killed. 
The  conquerors  ran  to  unbind  Fatal;  and  at  the  same  mo- 
ment they  saw  two  glittering  chariots  appear  in  the  air, 
from  one  of  which  a  fairy  descended;  in  the  other  were 
Fatal's  father  and  mother,  who  were  both  fast  asleep. 
They  did  not  awake  till  just  as  the  chariots  touched  the 
ground.  The  fairy,  however,  advanced;  Fatal  was  un- 
bound, and  addressing  the  queen,  and  presenting  Fatal 
to  her,  she  said:  "Madam,  in  this  hero  behold  your  eld- 
est son;  the  misfortunes  he  has  undergone  have  corrected 
the  defects  of  his  temper,  which  was  naturally  violent 
and  unruly;  whereas  Fortune,  who.  on  the  contrary,  was 
born  with  excellent  inclinations,  has  been  utterly  spoiled 
by  indulgence  and  flattery;  and  God  would  not  permit 
him  to  live  longer,  because  he  would  only  have  grown 
more  wicked  every  day  he  lived.  He  is  just  now  killed; 
but  to  comfort  you  for  his  death,  know  that,  impatient 
of  ascending  the  throne,  he  was  on  the  point  of  dethron- 
ing his  father."  The  king  and  queen  were  greatly  as- 
tonished, and  embraced  Fatal  very  affectionately,  having 
heard  great  commendations  of  him.  Princess  Graciosa 
and  her  father  were  delighted  with  the  discovery  of 
Prince  Fatal's  rank.  He  married  Graciosa,  and  they 
lived  together  to  a  good  old  age,  perfectly  happy  and 
perfectly  virtuous. 


THE  BENEFICENT  FKOG. 

THERE  was,  once  upon  a  time,  a  king  who  sustained 
for  many  years  a  constant  war  against  his  neighbors; 
after  many  battles  his  capital  was  besieged;  he  was  fright- 
ened on  account  of  his  queen,  and  entreated  her  to  retire 
to  a  castle  that  he  had  fortified,  and  which  he  had  never 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  125 

visited  but  once.  The  queen  employed  prayers  and  tears 
to  persuade  him  to  allow  her  to  remain  with  him;  she 
wished  to  share  his  fate,  and  uttered  piercing  cries  when 
he  gently  forced  her  into  her  chariot,  to  hasten  her  de- 
parture; however,  he  ordered  his  guards  to  accompany 
her,  and  promised  to  absent  himself  secretly  as  often  as 
he  could  to  visit  her.  He  soothed  her  with  this  promise, 
though  it  was  scarcely  probable  that  he  would  be  able  to 
fulfill  it,  for  the  castle  was  situated  at  an  immense  dis- 
tance from  the  capital,  in  the  middle  of  a  thick  forest; 
and  without  being  well  acquainted  with  the  roads,  it  was 
impossible  to  discover  it. 

The  queen  set  out,  very  sorrowful  at  leaving  her  hus- 
band amid  the  perils  of  war;  she  was  conducted  by  short 
stages,  lest  the  fatigue  of  so  long  a  journey  should  make 
her  ill;  at  last  she  arrived  at  her  castle,  very  uneasy  and 
very  low-spirited.  After  a  short  repose  she  wished  to 
amuse  herself  by  walking  about  the  environs  of  the 
castle,  but  she  found  nothing  to  make  her  cheerful;  she 
looked  all  around  her,  but  could  see  nothing  save  im- 
mense deserts,  which  rather  increased  than  diminished 
her  grief;  she  looked  toward  them  sorrowfully,  and 
sometimes  said:  "What  a  difference  between  my  present 
abode,  and  the  one  that  I  have  always  hitherto  been  used 
to!  If  I  remain  here  much  longer  I  shall  die.  •  To  whom 
shall  I  speak  in  this  solitude?  With  whom  can  I  share 
my  grief,  and  what  have  I  done  to  deserve  banishment 
from  the  king?  It  seems  that  he  wishes  me  to  feel  all 
the  bitterness  of  his  absence  by  exiling  me  to  this  dis- 
agreeable castle." 

In  this  way  would  she  complain;  and  although  the 
king  wrote  to  her  every  day,  and  sent  her  very  good  news 
about  thte  siege,  she  became  more  and  more  afflicted,  and 
determined  to  return  to  her  husband;  but  as  the  officers 
who  were  with  her  had  been  ordered  not  to  conduct  her 
back  except  a  courier  were  sent  expressly  for  her,  she 
kept  her  resolution  secret,  and  had  a  little  chariot  made, 
in  which  there  was  only  room  for  herself,  saying  that  she 
intended  occasionally  to  go  hunting.  She  herself  guided 
the  horses,  and  followed  so  closely  on  the  dogs'  heels 
that  the  huntsmen  could  not  keep  up  with  her;  by  this 
means  she  made  herself  mistress  of  her  chariot,  and  con- 
sequently had  it  in  her  power  to  go  when  she  liked. 


126  OLD,  OLD  FAIR7  TALES. 

There  was  but  one  difficulty,  which  was,  that  she  did  not 
know  the  roads  of  the  forest;  but  she  flattered  herself 
that  the  gods  would  conduct  her  safe  through;  and  after 
having  made  a  few  small  sacrifices,  she  said  that  she  in- 
tended to  have  a  grand  chase,  and  wished  everybody  to 
be  there;  that  she  should  go  in  her  chariot,  and  that 
everybody  should  take  different  roads  so  as  to  leave  no 
retreat  for  the  wild  beasts.  This  was  done.  The  young 
queen,  who  thought  soon  to  see  her  husband,  had  dressed 
herself  to  great  advantage:  her  hat  was  covered  with 
feathers  of  various  colors,  her  vest  enriched  with  precious 
stones;  and  her  beauty,  which  was  by  no  means  of  a 
common  kind,  thus  set  off,  made  her  look  like  a  second 
Diana. 

While  the  company  were  all  occupied  with  the  pleas- 
ures of  the  chase,  she  slackened  her  horses'  reins,  and 
encouraged  them  with  her  voice  and  two  or  three  lashes 
with  the  whip.  After  going  along  at  a  good  round  pace, 
they  began  to  gallop,  and  then  ran  away;  the  chariot 
seemed  to  be  borne  along  by  the  winds,  and  could  hardly 
be  followed  with  the  eye;  the  poor  queen,  now  that  it 
was  unavailing,  repented  her  temerity.  "What  have  I 
undertaken?"  said  she;  "how  was  it  possible  for  me  to 
guide  horses  so  high-spirited  and  unmanageable?  Alas! 
what  will  become  of  me?  Ah!  if  the  king  thought  that 
I  was  in  such  danger  as  this,  what  would  become  of  him 
— he  who  loves  me  so  tenderly,  and  who  only  sent  me 
away  from  his  capital  city  to  place  me  in  greater  safety? 
Behold  how  I  have  repaid  his  tender  care  of  me!"  The 
air  resounded  with  her  grievous  lamentations;  she  called 
on  the  gods,  she  invoked  the  fairies  to  her  assistance,  but 
the  gods  and  the  fairies  had  abandoned  her;  the  chariot 
overturned,  she  had  not  strength  to  jump  quickly  on  the 
ground,  and  her  foot  became  jammed  between  the  wheel 
and  the  axletree.  It  may  easily  be  imagined  that  it  was 
only  by  a  miracle  that  she  escaped  with  her  life  from  so 
shocking  an  accident. 

She  lay  stretched  on  the  ground  at  the  foot  of  a  tree; 
she  had  neither  pulse  nor  voice,  and  her  face  was  covered 
with  blood.  She  had  been  a  good  while  in  that  dread- 
ful condition,  when,  opening  her  eyes,  she  perceived  near 
her  a  woman  of  gigantic  size,  clothed  only  in  a  lion's 
skin,  her  arms  and  legs  being  naked;  her  hair  was  con- 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

fined  with  a  dry  serpent-skin,  the  head  of  the  serpent 
hanging  over  her  shoulders;  she  had  a  club  made  of  stone 
in  her  hand  which  served  for  a  walking-stick  to  support 
her,  and  a  quiver  full  of  arrows  by  her  side.  Such  an 
extraordinary  figure  made  the  queen  think  that  she  was 
dead,  for  she  could  not  imagine  that  after  such  dreadful 
accidents  it  was  possible  for  her  to  be  still  alive;  and 
speaking  in  a  very  low  tone  "I  am  not  surprised,"  said 
she,  "that  so  much  grief  is  felt  at  resolving  to  die,  for 
what -one  sees  in  the  other  world  is  very  terrible." 

The  giantess,  who  overheard  her,  could  not  help  laugh- 
ing at  the  queen's  idea  that  she  was  dead. 

"Cheer  up,"  said  she  to  her,  "and  know  that  you  are 
among  the  living;  but  your  destiny  will  not  be  the  less 
sorrowful.  I  am  the  Fairy  Lioness,  and  my  residence  is 
not  far  from  here;  you  must  come  and  pass  your  life  with 
me." 

The  queen  looked  at  her  sorrowfully,  and  said.  "If  it 
please  you,  Mistress  Lioness,  to  conduct  me  back  to  my 
castle,  and  inform  the  king  what  you  will  accept  for  my 
ransom,  he  loves  me  so  dearly  that  he  will  not  refuse 
even  half  his  kingdom." 

"No,"  answered  the  giantess,  ''I  am  rich  enough;  I 
have  been  very  dull  for  some  time  past  at  being  alone; 
you  have  wit,  perhaps  you  may  be  able  to  divert  me." 

As  she  said  these  words  she  took  the  form  of  a  lioness, 
and  placing  the  queen  on  her  back,  she  carried  her  to  the 
bottom  of  her  terrible  cave;  when  she  arrived  there  she 
healed  the  queen's  wounds  by  means  of  a  liquor  with 
which  she  rubbed  her. 

How  surprised  and  how  grieved  was  the  queen  when 
she  found  herself  in  that  dreadful  abode!  It  was  gained 
by  ten  thousand  stairs,  which  led  to  the  center  of  the 
earth,  where  was  a  large  lake  of  quicksilver,  covered 
with  monsters  whose  various  figures  might  have  fright- 
ened one  less  timid  than  our  queen.  A  few  dry  roots 
and  horse-chestnuts  were  all  that  the  Fairy  Lioness  ever 
gave  the  persons  who  were  so  unfortunate  as  to  fall  into 
ker  hands. 

When  it  was  almost  time  for  the  queen  to  go  to  bed 
the  fairy  told  her  that  she  might  make  herself  a  cabin, 
for  that  she  was  going  to  remain  with  her  all  her  life. 
The  princess  at  these  words  could  not  restrain  her  tears. 


128  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

"Oh!  what  have  I  done/'  said  she,  "to  deserve  being  de- 
tained here?  If  my  death,  which  I  feel  approaching, 
will  give  yon  pleasure,  put  me  to  death  at  once;  it  is  all 
that  I  dare  hope  from  your  pity;  but  do  not  condemn  me 
to  a  long  and  miserable  existence  without  my  husband.''* 
The  lioness  laughed  at  her  grief,  and  told  her  that  she 
advised  her  to  dry  her  tears,  and  try  to  please  her;  that 
if  she  did  not  do  so  she  would  be  the  most  wretched 
person  in  the  world.  "What  must  I  do,  then/'  said  the 
queen,  "to  move  your  heart?" 

"I  am  fond, "said  the  fairy  to  her,  "of  fly-pies;  I  wish 
you  to  find  means  of  catching  enough  flies  to  make  me 
a  very  large  and  excellent  pie." 

"But,"  answered  the  queen,  "I  do  not  see  any  at  all 
here;  and  if  there  were  plenty,  it  is  not  light  enough  to 
catch  them;  and  if  I  had  caught  them,  I  never  made  any 
pastry;  so  that  you  have  given  me  a  task  which  I  cannot 
fulfill." 

"No  matter,"  said  the  unmerciful  lioness,  "I  will  have 
what  I  wish." 

The  queen  made  no  reply;  she  thought  that,  in  spite 
of  the  cruel  fairy,  she  had  but  one  life  to  lose,  and  in  the 
state  she  then  was,  what  had  she  to  fear?  Instead,  then, 
of  looking  for  flies,  she  seated  herself  under  a  yew-tree, 
to  weep  at  her  ease. 

She  might  thus  have  wept  for  a  long  time,  if  she  had 
not  heard  over  her  head  the  sorrowful  croaking  of  a, 
crow.  She  looked  up,  and,  by  the  assistance  of  the  little 
moonlight  that  lighted  the  bank,  she  saw  a  large  crow 
holding  in  its  bill  a  frog,  which  apparently  she  was  about 
to  crunch.  "Although  nothing  happen  to  save  me," 
said  the  queen,  "I  will  not  neglect  to  save  the  life  of  a 
poor  frog,  which  is  as  much  afflicted  in  its  way  as  I  am 
in  mine."  She  made  use  of  the  first  stick  that  she  laid 
her  hand  upon,  to  make  the  crow  let  go  its  hold.  The 
frog  fell,  lay  for  some  time  insensible,  and  after  awhile 
recovering  its  frogly  spirits:  "Beautiful  queen,"  it  said, 
"you  are  the  only  kind  person  whom  I  have  seen  in  this, 
place,  since  curiosity  first  brought  me  here." 

"By  what  miracle  are  you  able  to  speak,  little  frog?" 
answered  the  queen,  "and  who  are  the  people  whom  you 
see  here?  For  I  have  seen  no  one  yet." 

"All  the  monsters  with  which  this  lake  is  covered," 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  129 

replied  Grenouilletta  (that  was  the  frog's  name),  "have 
once  been  in  the  world,  some  kings,  and  others  in  the 
confidence  of  their  sovereigns;  their  fate  sends  them  here 
awhile,  although  none  of  those  who  come  here  ever  re- 
turn any  better,  or  corrected  for  their  stay." 

"I  can  easily  understand,"  said  the  queen,  "that  the 
union  of  many  wicked  persons  will  not  aid  in  their  ref- 
ormation; but  with  regard  to  you,  Mistress  Frog,  what 
are  you  doing  here?" 

"Curiosity  has  induced  me  to  come  here,"  replied  she; 
"I  am  a  half-fairy;  my  power  is  limited  in  some  things, 
and  very  extensive  in  others;  if  the  Fairy  Lioness  knew 
that  I  were  in  her  dominions  she  would  put  me  to 
death." 

"But  how  is  it  possible,"  said  the  queen,  "that,  fairy 
or  half-fairy,  a  crow  should  have  been  about  to  devour 
you?" 

"Two  words  will  explain  that  to  you,"  said  the  frog. 
"When  I  wear  my  little  wreath  of  roses  on  my  head,  in 
which  consists  my  chief  power,  I  fear  nothing;  but  un- 
fortunately I  had  left  it  in  the  marsh,  when  that  wicked 
crow  pounced  upon  me.  I  confess,  madam,  that  but  for 
you  I  should  now  have  been  dead;  and  since  I  owe  you 
my  life,  if  anything  lies  in  my  power  to  alleviate  yours, 
you  may  command  me  in  whatever  way  you  please." 

"Alas,  my  dear  frog!"  said  the  queen,  "the  wicked 
fairy  who  holds  me  in  captivity  wants  me  to  make  her  a 
fly-pie;  there  are  no  flies  here;  if  there  were  any,  it  is  too 
dark  to  catch  them,  and  I  am  in  danger  of  dying  under 
her  blows." 

"Leave  it  to  me,"  said  the  frog;  "before  long  I  will 
furnish  you  with  enough." 

She  then  rubbed  her  body  all  over  with  sugar,  then  she 
called  out  of  the  pond  quite  an  army  of  frogs,  upward  of 
six  thousand  of  her  acquaintance,  and  they  did  the  same; 
they  then  went  to  a  place  crowded  with  flies,  for  the 
wicked  fairy  had  thereabout  a  magazine  of  them,  pur- 
posely for  tormenting  unfortunate  persons  in  her  power. 
When  they  smelled  the  sugar  they  settled  on  the  bodies 
of  the  officious  frogs,  who  then  made  haste  back  to  where 
the  queen  was.  Never  was  there  suCh  a  capture  of  flies, 
nor  a  better  pie  than  the  queen  made  for  the  Fairy  Lion- 
ess. When  it  was  presented  to  her  she  was  not  a  little 


130  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

surprised,  not  understanding  by  what  means  the  queen 
had  managed  to  catch  so  many  files. 

The  qpieen,  being  exposed  to  all  the  inclemency  of  the 
air,  which  was  poisonous,  cut  some  cypress  branches  to 
begin  building  her  little  house  with,  The  frog  gener- 
ously came  to  proffer  her  assistance,  and  putting  herself 
at  the  head  of  those  who  had  been  to  fetch  the  flies,  the 
whole  of  them  assisted  the  queen  to  erect  a  little  build- 
ing, which,  when  completed,  was  the  prettiest  in  the 
world;  but  the  queen  had  hardly  lain  down  in  it  when  the 
monsters  of  the  lake,  jealous  of  her  repose,  came  to  tor- 
ment her  with  the  most  deafening  and  horrible  din  that 
until  then  had  ever  been  heard.  She  arose,  dreadfully 
terrified,  and  fled,  which  was  just  what  the  monsters 
wanted.  A  dragon,  who  had  formerly  tyrannized  over 
one  of  the  finest  kingdoms  in  the  world,  immediately 
took  possession  of  her  little  house. 

The  poor  afflicted  queen  wished  to  complain  of  this, 
but  in  truth  she  was  only  ridiculed;  the  monsters 
whooped  at  her,  and  the  Fairy  Lioness  told  her  that  if 
she  kept  dinning  such  lamentations  in  her  ears  she  would 
soundly  beat  her.  So  she  was  obliged  to  hold  her  peace 
and  apply  to  the  frog,  who  was  the  most  obliging  creature 
in  the  world.  They  wept  together;  for  when  she  had 
her  wreath  of  roses  on  she  could  laugh  and  cry,  the  same 
as  an  ordinary  person.  "I  feel  so  strong  a  friendship  for 
you,"  said  the  frog  to  the  queen,  "that  I  will  recom- 
mence building  your  little  house,  though  all  the  monsters 
of  the  lake  should  die  with  spleen."  She  immediately 
set  about  cutting  the  wood,  and  the  queen's  little  rural 
palace  took  so  short  a  time  to  build  that  she  went  to  bed 
in  it  that  same  night. 

The  frog,  attentive  to  all  the  queen's  wants,  had  made 
her  a  bed  of  wild  thyme.  When  the  wicked  fairy  under- 
stood that  the  queen  no  longer  slept  upon  the  ground, 
she  sent  for  her.  "Tell  me  immediately  who  are  the 
gods  or  men  who  protect  you,"  said  she  to  her.  "This 
land,  always  watered  with  rain  of  'fire  and  sulphur,  has 
never  yet  produced  even  the  value  of  a  leaf  of  sage;  not- 
withstanding that,  I  learn  that  odoriferous  herbs  grow 
under  your  footsteps!" 

"I  am  ignorant  of  the  cause,  madam,"  answered  the 
queen,. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  131 

"The  humor  takes  me,"  said  the  fairy,  "to  have  a 
nosegay  of  the  rarest  flowers;  try  if  your  good  fortune 
will  supply  you  with  one;  if  it  does  not  you  shall  not 
need  a  good  flogging;  for  I  often  administer  floggings, 
and  always  do  so  marvelously  well." 

The  queen  began  to  cry;  such  threats  were  not  agree- 
able to  her,  and  the  impossibility  of  finding  flowers  made 
her  despair. 

She  returned  to  her  little  house;  her  friend  the  frog 
called  to  see  her.  "How  sorrowful  you  are!"  said  she  to 
the  queen. 

"Alas!  dear  gossip,  is  it  not  enough  to  make  me  so? 
The  fairy  wants  a  nosegay  of  the  finest  flowers;  and  where 
shall  I  be  able  to  find  them?  You  perceive  that  there 
are  none  here;  yet  her  mandate  runs  that  my  life  de- 
pends upon  satisfying  her  wish." 

"Amiable  princess,"  said  the  frog  graciously,  "I  must 
try  to  free  you  from  your  embarrassment;  there  is  here  a 
bat,  who  is  the  only  one  with  whom  I  have  had  any  deal- 
ings; she  is  a  good  creature,  and  can  go  faster  than  I;  I 
will  lend  her  my  wreath  of  roses,  by  the  assistance  of 
which  she  will  be  able  to  find  you  some  flowers." 

The  queen  made  her  a  low  courtesy,  for  there  was  no 
means  of  embracing  Grenouilletta. 

Grenouilletta  immediately  went  to  talk  with  the  bat, 
who  some  time  afterward  returned,  concealing  under  her 
wings  some  very  beautiful  flowers.  The  queen  made 
haste  to  take  them  to  the  wicked  fairy,  who  was  more 
surprised  than  ever,  not  understanding  by  what  miracle 
the  queen  was  so  well  befriended  upon  all  occasions.  The 
queen  was  incessantly  devising  some  means  of  making 
her  escape.  She  communicated  her  wish  to  the  good 
frog,  who  said  to  her:  "Permit  me,  madam,  first  of  all, 
to  consult  my  little  wreath,  and  we  will  then  act  accord- 
ing to  its  advice."  She  accordingly  took  it,  and  having 
placed  it  on  some  straw,  she  burned  some  slips  of  juniper 
wood,  some  capers,  and  two  little  green  peas,  and  croaked 
five  times;  then  the  ceremony  being  finished,  she  resumed 
her  wreath  of  roses,  to  speak  like  an  oracle. 

"Fate,  which  orders  all  things,"  said  she,  "forbids 
your  quitting  this  place;  you  will  here  have  a  princess 
more  beautiful  than  the  mother  of  Love;  for  the  rest,  do 
not  trouble  yourself,  as  time  alone  will  be  able  to  relieve 
you." 


132  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

The  queen  cast  down  her  eyes,  and  tears  forced  their 
way;  but  she  resolved  to  trust  in  her  friend.  "At  least, 
you  will  not  abandon  me/'  said  she  to  her.  The  good 
frog  consoled  her  as  well  as  she  was  able. 

But  it  is  high  time  to  say  a  few  words  concerning  the 
king.  While  his  enemies  had  him  besieged  in  his  capital 
city,  he  could  not  be  continually  sending  messengers  to 
the  queen;  however,  having  made  several  sallies  and 
obliged  them  to  retire,  he  felt  much  less  the  happiness 
of  this  event,  on  his  own  account,  than  on  that  of  his 
dear  queen,  whom  he  could  now  recall  to  his  court  with- 
out danger.  He  was  ignorant  of  her  disaster,  none  of 
her  officers  having  dared  to  go  to  the  city  and  inform  him 
of  it.  They  had  found  in  the  forest  the  remains  of  her 
chariot,  and  all  the  Amazonian  decorations  with  which 
she  had  adorned  herself  to  go  and  seek  him  in,  the  horses 
having  escaped. 

As  they  had  no  doubt  of  her  being  dead,  and  as  they 
thaught  "she  had  been  devoured,  they  did  not  debate 
among  themselves  about  the  expediency  of  persuading 
the  king  that  she  had  died  suddenly.  At  this  fatal  news 
he  thought  that  he  himself  should  die  of  sorrow;  hair 
torn,  tears  shed,  mournful  cries,  sobs,  sighs,  and  other 
sad  privileges  of  widowhood,  were  indulged  in;  nothing 
was  neglected  on  this  occasion. 

After  having  spent  several  days  in  retirement,  he  re- 
turned to  his  capital  city,  dressed  in  deep  mourning, 
which  he  felt  more  in  his  heart  than  his  clothes  testified. 
All  the  ambassadors  of  the  kings  his  neighbors  came  to 
condole  with  him;  and  after  the  ceremonials  which  are 
inseparable  from  such  an  occurrence  he  applied  himself 
to  giving  his  subjects  an  interval  of  quiet,  exempting 
them  from  war,  and  procuring  for  them  an  extensive 
commerce. 

The  queen  was  ignorant  of  all  this,  and  she  was  hap- 
pier when  Heaven  blessed  her  with  a  little  princess,  as 
beautiful  as  Grenouilletta  had  foretold;  she  was  named 
Moufette,  and  with  much  difficulty  the  queen  obtained 
leave  of  the  Fairy  Lioness  to  bring  her  up,  for  she  was  GO 
ferocious  that  she  had  a  violent  longing  to  eat  her. 

Moufette,  the  wonder  of  her  time,  was  already  six 
months  old;  when,  looking  at  her  with  tenderness  mixed 
with  sorrow,  the  queen  said  incessantly:  "Oh!  if  the 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


133 


king  your  father  saw  you,  my  poor  little  baby,  how  glad 
he  would  be!  how  dear  you  would  be  to  him!  But  per- 
haps at  this  moment  he  is  beginning  to  forget  me;  he  be- 
lieves that  we  are  forever  buried  in  the  horrors  of  death; 
perhaps,  even  now,  the  place  in  his  heart  devoted  formerly 
to  me  is  occupied  by  another." 

These  sorrowful  reflections  cost  her  many  tears;  the 


frog,  who  loved  her  sincerely,  seeing  her  thus  crying, 
said  to  her  one  day:  "If  you  wish  it,  madam,  I  will  go 
and  find  the  king  your  husband;  the  journey  is  long, 
and  I  travel  slowly;  but  at  last,  a  little  sooner  or  a  little 
later,  I  hope  to  accomplish  it." 

This  proposal  could  not  have  been  more  agreeably 
received  than  it  was;  the  queen  clasped  her  hands,  and 
even  made  Moufette  join  hers,  to  sltow  Madam  Gren- 
ouilletta  how  obliged  she  should  be  if  she  would  under-, 
take  the  journey.  She  assured  her  that  the  king  would 


134  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

not  be  ungrateful.  "But/'  continued  she,  "of  what 
utility  will  it  be  to  him  to  know  that  I  am  in  this  sor- 
rowful abode?  It  will  be  impossible  for  him  to  rescue  me 
from  it." 

"Madam,"  replied  the  frog,  "we  must  for  our  part  do 
what  depends  upon  us  and  leave  the  care  of  the  rest  to 
Heaven." 

They  then  bade  each  other  adieu;  the  queen  wrote  to 
the  king,  with  her  own  blood,  on  a  little  scrap  of  linen, 
for  she  had  neither  ink  nor  paper.  She  entreated  him 
to  trust  in  all  respects  to  the  worthy  frog  who  had 
brought  him  news  of  her. 

She  was  a  year  and  four  days  ascending  the  ten  thou- 
sand steps  that  lay  between  the  black  plain,  where  she 
had  left  the  queen,  to  the  world,  and  she  was  another 
year  forming  her  equipage;  for  she  was.  too  proud  to  be 
willing  to  appear  at  a  royal  court  like  a  sorry  frog  from 
the  marsh.  She  had  made  a  little  car,  large  enough  to 
hold  conveniently  two  eggs;  it  was  entirely  covered  out- 
side with  tortoise-shell,  and  lined  with  the  skins  of  young 
lizards.  She  had  fifty  maids  of  honor,  who  were  of  those 
little  green  frogs  which  leap  about  the  meadows;  each  of 
them  was  mounted  on  a  snail,  on  an  English  saddle,  with 
her  leg  on  the  bow,  comporting  herself  to  admiration; 
several  water-rats,  dressed  as  pages,  to  whom  she  had 
confided  the  care  of  her  person,  preceded  the  snails:  in  a 
word,  nothing  was  ever  so  pretty,  especially  as  her  wreath 
of  red  roses,  always  fresh  and  blooming,  became  her  the 
best  in  the  world.  .She  was  rather  vain  of  her  errand, 
which  had  made  her  use  rouge  and  patches:  it  was  even 
said  that  she  was  painted,  as  are  most  of  the  ladies  of  that 
country;  but  on  inquiry,  it  was  found  that  it  was  her 
enemies  who  had  spread  that  report  of  her. 

She  was  seven  years  on  her  journey,  during  which  time 
the  queen  suffered  inexpressible  pains  and  hardships; 
and  but  for  the  fair  Moufette,  who  consoled  her,  she 
would  have  died  over  and  over  again.  That  wonderful 
little  creature  never  opened  her  mouth  or  spoke  a  word 
without  delighting  her  mother;  she  even  softened  a  little 
the  heart  of  the  Fairy  Lioness;  and  at  last,  after  the 
queen  had  passed  six  years  in  that  horrible  sojourn,  she 
allowed  her  to  take  her  daughter  a-hunting,  provided 
that  all  she  killed  should  be  for  her. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  135 

What  a  pleasure  for  the  poor  queen  once  more  to  see 
the  sun!  She  was  so  unaccustomed  to  the  sight  of  it 
that  she  was  fearful  of  becoming  blind.  With  regard  to 
Moufette,  she  was  so  skillful  that,  though  only  five  or  six 
years  old,  nothing  escaped  her  aim;  by  this  means  the 
mother  and  daughter  softened  a  little  the  fairy's  cruelty. 

Grenouilletta  traveled  day  and  night  over  hill  and 
dale,  and  at  last  arrived  near  the  capital  city  where  the 
kirfcg  held  his  court;  she  was  surprised  at  seeing,  wher- 
eT&er  she  came,  nothing  but  dancing  and  feasting;  there 
was  laughing,  there  was  singing,  and  the  nearer  she  ap- 
proached the  town,  the  greater,  she  observed,  was  the  joy 
and  festivity.  Her  majestic  equipage  surprised  every- 
body; all  who  saw  it  followed  her,  and  the  crowd  became 
so  nume-rous  when  she  entered  the  city  that  she  had  the 
greatest  difficulty  to  reach  the  palace:  at  that  palace 
everything  was  magnificent.  The  king,  who  had  been 
nine  years  a  widower,  had  at  last  yielded  to  the  prayers 
of  his  subjects;  he  was  on  the  point  of  marrying  a 
princess,  certainly  less  beautiful  than  his  wife,  but  who, 
nevertheless,  was  very  charming. 

Having  quitted  the  car,  the  good  frog  entered  the 
palace,  followed  by  all  her  cortege.  She  had  no  occasion 
to  demand  an  audience:  the  monarch,  his  betrothed, 
and  all  the  princes,  were  too  impatient  to  know  the  object 
of  her  coming  to  interrupt  her.  "Sir,"  said  she,  "1  do 
not  know  whether  the  news  I  bring  you  will  give  you  joy 
or  sorrow;  the  wedding  which  is  about  to  take  place  con- 
vinces me  of  your  infidelity  to  your  queen." 

"Her  memory  is  always  dear  to  me,"  said  the  king, 
shedding  tears  which  he  could  not  restrain;  "but  you 
must  know,  gentle  frog,  that  kings  do  not  always  what 
they  wish;  my  subjects  have  been  pressing  me  to  marry 
for  these  last  nine  years;  I  owe  them  heirs,  and  accord- 
ingly have  turned  my  eyes  toward  this  young  princess, 
who  appears  to  me  to  be  charming  in  every  respect." 

"I  do  not  advise  you  to  marry  her,  for  polygamy  is  a 
hanging  matter;  your  queen  is  not  dead;  here  is  a  letter 
written  with  her  blood,  which  she  intrusted  to  me;  you 
have  also  a  little  princess,  Moufette,  who  is  more  beauti- 
ful than  all  the  goddesses." 

The  king  took  the  rag  on  which  the  queen  had 
scrawled  a  few  words;  he  kissed  it,  he  watered  it  with  his 


136  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES- 

tears,  and  showed  it  to  all  the  assembly,  saying  that  he 
knew  very  well  his  wife's  handwriting;  he  asked  the  frog 
a  thousand  questions,  which  sh*e  answered  with  as  much 
wit  as  liveliness.  The  bride-elect  and  the  ambassadors 
charged  with  seeing  the  solemnization  of  her  marriage 
made  very  wry  faces.  "How,  sire,"  said  the  chief  of 
them,  "is  it  possible  that  you  can,  on  the  assertion  of 
such  a  reptile  as  this,  break  off  so  solemn  a  marriage? 
This  scum  of  the  marsh  has  the  insolence  to  come  with  a 
lie  in  her  mouth  to  your  court,  and  enjoys  the  pleasure  of 
being  listened  to!" 

"Mister  Ambassador,"  said  the  frog,  "learn  that  I  am 
not  the  scum  of  the  marsh;  and  since  I  must  here  display 
my  science,  fairies  and  frogs  appear!"  All  the  frogs, 
rats,  snails,  lizards,  and  herself  at  their  head,  did  appear; 
but  no  longer  in  the  shape  of  those  dirty  little  animals; 
their  figures  were  tall  and  majestic,  their  countenances 
agreeable,  their  eyes  brighter  than  stars;  each  of  them  wore 
a  crown  of  precious  stones  oh  his  head  and  a  royal  mantle 
on  his  shoulders,  made  of  velvet  and  lined  with  ermine, 
with  a  long  train,  which  was  borne  by  male  and  female 
dwarfs.  At  the  same  time  trumpets,  kettle  drums,  haut- 
boys, and  drums  pierced  the  clouds  with  their  agreeable 
and  warlike  sounds;  all  the  fairies  and  frogs  commenced 
a  ballet,  so  lightly  danced  that  at  their  least  gambade 
they  leaped  as  high  as  the  ceiling  of  the  saloon.  The 
attentive  king  and  bride-elect  were  equally  surprised 
when  they  saw  these  honorable  merry-andrews  all  at  once 
metamorphosed  into  flowers,. which  danced  none  the  less 
— jasmine,  jonquils,  violets,  pinks  and  tuberoses — than 
when  they  had  had  legs  and  feet.  It  was  an  animated 
flower-bed,  the  motions  of  which  were  equally  grateful  to 
the  nose  and  pleasant  to  the  eye.  In  a  moment  the 
flowers  vanished,  and  were  replaced  by  several  fountains; 
their  waters,  rapidly  ascending  and  falling,  formed  them- 
selves into  a  large  canal,  which  took  its  course  at  the 
foot  of  the  palace  walls;  it  was  covered  with  little  painted 
and  gilded  pleasure-boats,  so  pretty  and  elegant  that  the 
princess  invited  her  ambassadors  to  enter  them  with  her, 
and  take  a  little  trip  in  them.  They  were  very  willing, 
thinking  it  was  all  a  play,  which  would  at  last  terminate 
in  a  happy  wedding. 

Directly  they  had  embarked,  the  pleasure-boats,  the 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  137 

river  and  all  the  fountains  disappeared;  the  frogs  became 
frogs  again.  The  king  asked  for  his  princess.  The  frog 
replied:  "Sire,  you  have  no  right  to  any  princess  but  the 
queen  your  wife;  were  Hess  her  friend,  I  should  not  have 
troubled  myself  about  the  marriage  which  you  were  on 
the  point  of  contracting;  but  she  has  so  much  merit,  and 
your  daughter  Moufette  is  so  amiable,  that  you  must  not 
lose  a  moment  in  trying  to  deliver  them." 

"I  must  confess  to  you,  Mistress  Frog,"  said  the  king, 
"that  if  I  had  not  believed  my  wife  was  dead  there  is 
nothing  in  the  world  that  I  would  not  have  done  to  see 
her  again." 

"After  the  marvels  that  I  have  performed  in  your 
presence,"  replied  she,  "it  appears  to  me  that  you  ought 
to  be  convinced  of  the  truth  of  my  assertions.  Leave 
your  kingdom  under  strict  orders,  and  do  not  defer  your 
departure.  Here  is  a  ring  that  will  furnish  you  with  the 
means  of  seeing  the  queen  and  of  speaking  to  the  Fairy 
Lioness,  although  she  is  the  most  terrible  creature  in  the 
world. "  ^ 

The  king,  no  longer  seeing  the  princess  whom  he  was 
to  have  married,  felt  his  passion  for  her  growing  very 
weak,  and,  on  the  contrary,  that  which  he  had  enter- 
tained for  the  queen  gaining  new  ground. 

He  set  out,  unaccompanied  by  any  one,  after  having 
made  very  considerable  presents  to  the  frog.  "Do  not  be 
disheartened,"  said  the  latter  to  him;  you  will  have  for- 
midable difficulties  to  overcome,  but  I  hope  you  will  suc- 
ceed in  attaining  your  wish."  The  king,  comforted  by 
these  words,  took  no  other  guide  than  his  ring  to  seek  his 
dear  queen. 

As  Moufette  increased  in  size,  her  beauty  improved  so 
much  that  all  the  monsters  of  the  quicksilver  lake  fell  in 
love  with  her;  dragons  of  terrible  shape  and  size  humbled 
themselves  at  her  feet.  Although  she  had  constantly 
seen  them,  her  beautiful  eyes  could  not  become  accus- 
tomed to  them;  she  fled  and  took  refuge  in  her  mother's 
arms.  "Shall  we  be  here  long?"  said  she  to  her;  "will 
our  misfortunes  never  cease?"  The  queen  gave  her  good 
hopes  to  console  her,  but  ?n  her  heart  she  entertained 
none  herself.  The  long  absence  of  the  frog,  her  pro- 
found silence,  so  long  a  period  passed  without  any  news 
from  the  king— all  this,  I  say,  afflicted  her  excessively 
and  gave  her  no  room  to  hope 


138  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

The  Fairy  Lioness  gradually  accustomed  herself  to  al- 
low them  to  go  hunting  with  her;  she  was  dainty,  and 
fond  of  the  game  which  they  killed  for  her,  but  the  only 
recompense  she  gave  them  was  either  the  feet  or  the 
head.  What  was  more  valuable,  however,  was  their  being 
permitted  to  enjoy  once  more  the  precious  light  of  day. 
The  fairy  took  the  shape  of  a  lioness;  the  queen  arid  her 
daughter  seated  themselves  on  her  back,  and  in  that  way 
they  scoured  the  woods. 

The  king,  conducted  by  his  ring,  happening  to  stop  for 
a  short  time  in  a  forest,  saw  them  pass  like  an  arrow  from 
a  bow;  he  was  not  perceived  by  them,  but  though  he 
wished  to  follow  them,  they  absolutely  vanished  from  his 
eyes. 

Notwithstanding  the  incessant,  misfortunes  of  the 
queen,  her  beauty  was  not  changed,  and  she  seemed  to 
him  more  beautiful  than  ever.  All  his  former  passion 
rekindled,  and,  not  doubting  that  the  young  princess 
with  her  was  his  dear  Moufette,  he  determined  to  perish 
a  thousand  times  rather  than  abandon  his  design  of  res- 
cuing them. 

The  officious  ring  conducted  him  to  the  gloomy  abode 
which  had  been  tenanted  by  .the  queen  for  so  many  years; 
he  was  not  a  little  surprised  at  descending  to  the  center 
of  the  earth,  but  what  he  there  saw  astonished  him  still 
more.  The  Fairy  Lioness,  who  was  ignorant  of  nothing, 
knew  the  day  and  hour  when  he  was  destined  to  arrive. 
What  would  she  not  have  given  if  Fate,  in  conjunction 
with  herself,  had  ordered  it  otherwise!  But  she  resolved 
at  least  to  oppose  all  her  power  to  that  of  the  king. 

She  built  in  the  middle  of  the  quicksilver  lake  a  crystal 
palace,  which  floated  like  a  wave;  she  confined  the  poor 
queen  and  her  daughter  in  it,  and  then  addressed  all  the 
monsters  who  were  amorous  of  Moufette,  saying:  "You 
will  lose  this  beautiful  princess  if  you  do  not  interest 
yourselves  with  me  to  defend  her  against  a  knight  who 
is  coming  to  carry  her  off."  The  monsters  promised  to 
neglect  nothing  that  lay  in  their  power;  they  surrounded 
the  crystal  palace,  the  lightest  of  them  stationing  them- 
selves on  the  roof  and  walls,  others  at  the  doors,  and  the 
remainder  in  the  lake. 

The  king,  by  the  advice  of  his  faithful  ring,  went  first 
to  the  fairy's  cavern;  she  was  waiting  for  him  in  the 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TAL3S.  139 

shape  of  a  lioness.  Directly  he  appeared,  she  sprang  upon 
him,  he  wielded  his  sword  with  bravery  that  she  had  not 
expected,  and  as  she  was  raising  one  of  her  paws  to  beat 
him  down,  he  made  a  cut  at  one  of  her  joints  and  exactly 
hit  her  knee.  She  uttered  a  loud  cry  and  fell;  he  went 
up  to  her,  put  his  knee  on  her  throat,  and  swore  that 
he  would  kill  her,  and,  in  spite  of  her  invulnerable  fury, 
she  could  not  help  being  afraid.  "What  do  you  wish  me 
to  do?"  said  she  to  him.  "What  do  you  require  of  me?" 

"I  mean  to  punish  you, "replied  he  proudly,  "for  hav- 
ing carried  ofE  my  wife,  and  if  you  do  not  immediately 
restore  her  to  me  I  will  strangle  you  on  the  spot." 

"Lock  toward  that  lake,"  said  she,  "and  see  whether 
she  is  in  my  power." 

The  king  looked  in  the  direction  she  pointed  out  to 
him,  and  saw  the  queen  and  her  daughter  in  the  crystal 
castle,  which  was  floating  like  a  galley  without  oars  or 
helm  on  the  surface  of  the  quicksilver. 

His  joy  and  grief  were  so  great  that  they  had  nearly 
cost  him  his  life.  He  called  them  at  the  top  of  his  voice, 
and  made  himself  heard  by  them;  but  how  to  reach 
them?  was  the  question.  While  he  was  seeking  the 
means  of  doing  so,  the  Fairy  Lioness  disappeared. 

He  kept  running  round  the  shores  of  the  lake;  when 
he  arrived  on  one  side,  and  was  very  near  reaching  the 
transparent  palace,  it  went  away  from  him  with  incred- 
ible swiftness,  and  his  hopes  were  thus  constantly  disap- 
pointed. The  queen,  who  was  fearful  that  he  would 
Eresently  get  tired,  called  to  him  not  to  let  his  courage 
lil,  that  the  Fairy  Lioness  wished  to  fatigue  him,  but 
that  true  love  could  not  be  daunted  by  any  difficulties. 
Thereupon  she  and  Moufette  stretched  their  hands  to- 
ward him  supplicatingly.  At  that  sight  the  king  felt 
himself  strengthened  yet  again,  and,  raising  his  voice,  he 
swore  by  Styx  and  Acheron  rather  to  pass  the  remainder 
of  his  life  in  that  sorrowful  place  than  quit  it  without 
them. 

He  must  have  possessed  great  perseverance,  for  he 
passed  his  time  very  miserably.  The  earth,  covered  with 
brambles  and  thorns,  served  him  for  bed;  his  only  food 
was  wild  fruit,  more  bitter  than  gaH,  and  he  had  inces- 
sant battles  to  fight  with  the  monsters  of  the  lake. 
Husbands  who  would  endure  all  tnis  for  the  sake  of  see- 


140  OLD.  OLD  FAIRT  TALES. 

ing  their  T7iyes  once  more  were  certainly  contemporary 
with  the  fairies,  and  his  conduct  sufficiently  distinguishes 
the  epoch  of  my  tale. 

Three  years  passed  away  without  the  king  having  any 
grounds  for  hoping  to  attain  his  end;  he  was  almost  in 
despair;  he  resolved  a  hundred  times  to  throw  himself. in 
the  lake,  and  he  would  have  done  so  if  he  could  have 
looked  upon  such  conduct  as  a  remedy  for  the  queen  and 
princess'  troubles.  He  was  running,  according  to  his 
usual  custom,  first  to  one  side  then  to  another,  when  a 
frightful  dragon  called  him,  and  said:  "If  you  are  will- 
ing to  swear  to  me  by  your  crown  and  scepter,  your  royal 
mantle,  your  wife  and  daughter,  to  give  me  a  certain 
dainty  bit  to  eat  that  I  am  fond  of,  and  which  I  shall  ask 
you  for  when  I  feel  inclined  for  it,  I  will  take  you  on  my 
wings,  and  in  spite  of  all  the  monsters  which  cover  the  lake 
and  guard  the  crystal  castle,  I  engage  that  between  us  we 
will  liberate  the  queen  and  the  Princess  Moufette." 

"Ah,  my  dear  dragon,"  cried  the  king,  "I  swear  to 
give  you,  and  all  }rour  dragonish  kind,  whatever  you 
please  to  eat,  and  will  always  remain  your  grateful 
debtor." 

"Do  not  bind  yourself,"  replied  the  dragon,  "if  you 
do  not  intend  to  keep  your  word;  for  in  that  case  such 
terrible  misfortunes  will  happen  that  you  will  remember 
them  all  the  rest  of  your  life." 

The  king  redoubled  his  protestations;  he  was  dying 
with  impatience  to  deliver  his  dear  queen;  he  mounted 
on  the  dragon's  back,  the  same  as  he  would  have  done  on 
the  finest  horse  in  the  world.  The  monsters  came  to 
meet  them  and  oppose  their  passage;  they  fought,  and 
nothing  was  heard  but  the  sharp  hissing  of  serpents,  and 
nothing  seen  but  sulphur  and  saltpeter,  falling  indiscrim- 
inately: at  last  the  king  reached  the  castle;  the  efforts 
were  there  renewed;  bats,  owls,  and  ravens  all  opposed 
.his  entrance;  but  the  dragon,  with  his  claws,  teeth,  and 
tail,  crushed  to  atoms  the  most  daring  among  them. 
The  queen,  on  her  side,  who  witnessed  that  dreadful 
conflict,  by  dint  of  kicking  with  her  feet  broke  pieces 
from  the  walls,  and  made  of  them  arms  to  jissist  her  dear 
husband;  they  were  at  last  victorious,  they  met,  and  the 
enchantment  was  dissolved  by  a  thunderbolt,  which  fell 
into  the  lake  and  dried  it  up. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  141 

The  officious  dragon  disappeared  on  the  instant*,  with 
all  the  other  monsters;  &nd  the  king,  without  being  able 
to  divine  by  what  means,  was  transported  to  his  capital 
city:  he  found  himself  with  the  queen  and  Moufette 
seated  in  a  magnificent  saloon,  at  a  table  spread  with  a  de- 
licious repast.  Never  was  astonishment  equal  to  theirs, 
or  joy  greater.  All  their  subjects  hastened  to  see  their 
queen  and  the  young  princess,  who,  as  a  climax  to  the 
prodigy,  was  so  superbly  dressed  that  their  sight  could 
hardly  endure  the  dazzling  luster  of  the  precious  stones. 

It  is  easy  to  imagine  that  pleasure  of  all  kinds  was  the 
chief  business  of  the  happy  court:  there  were  masquer- 
ades, races  for  rings,  tournaments  which  attracted  the 
greatest  princes  in  the  world;  and  Moufette's  beautiful 
eyes  detained  them  all.  Among  those  who  appeared  the 
handsomest  and  most  skillful  of  them,  the  Prince  Moufy 
always  bore  off  the  palm;  nothing  was  heard  but  ap- 
plause, everybody  admired  him,  and  the  young  Moufette, 
who  had  till  then  been  always  among  the  dragons  and 
serpents  of  the  lake,  could  not  avoid  doing  justice  to 
Moufy's  merit;  he  never  let  a  day  pass  without  showing 
her  fresh  gallantries;  for  he  was  passionately  fond  of  her; 
and  having  determined  to  establish  his  pretensions,  he 
informed  the  king  and  queen  that  his  principality  was  of 
an  extent  and  beauty  that  merited  particular  attention. 

The  king  told  him  that  Moufette  was  at  liberty  to 
choose  herself  a  husband,  and  that  he  would  contradict 
her  in  nothing;  that  he  must  strive  to  please  her,  as  it 
was  the  only  means  of  obtaining  his  wish.  The  prince 
was  in  ecstasies  at  this  answer;  he  had  learned  at  several 
meetings  that  he  was  not  indifferent  to  her;  and  having 
at  last  declared  himself  to  her,  she  told  him  that  if  he 
did  not  become  her  husband  she  would  have  no  one  else. 
Moufy,  transported  with  joy,  threw  himself  at  her  feet, 
and  conjured  her  in  the  most  tender  terms  not  to  forget 
the  declaration  she  had  made. 

He  immediately  hastened  to  the  king  and  queen's 
apartment,  and  gave  them  an  account  of  the  progress  of 
his  passion  for  Moufette,  and  begged  them  not  to  defer 
his  happiness.  They  gave  their  consent  with  pleasure; 
for  Prince  Moufy  was  so  accomplished  that  he  alone 
seemed  worthy  of  possessing  the  admirable  Moufette. 
The  king  wished  to  betroth  them  before  Moufy  returned 


142  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

to  his  kingdom,  where  he  had  to  go  to  give  orders  for  his 
marriage;  for  he  would' rather  never  have  set  out  than  go 
away  without  certain  assurances  that  he  should  be  made 
happy  on  his  return.  The  Princess  Moufette  could  not 
bid  him  adieu  without  shedding  many  tears;  she  had  un- 
definable  sensations  which  afflicted  her;  and  the  queen, 
seeing  the  prince  overwhelmed  with  grief,  gave  him  her 
daughter's  portrait,  entreating  him  by  the  love  he  bore 
them  both  that  the  entry  he  was  going  to  order  should 
not  be  so  magnificent  as  to  retard  in  the  least  his  return. 
He  said:  "Madam,  I  never  obeyed  you  with  so  much 
pleasure  as  I  shall  on  this  occasion;  my  heart  is  too  much 
interested  in  it  to  allow  me  to  neglect  the  means  of 
making  myself  happy." 

He  departed  with  expedition,  and  the  Princess  Mou- 
fette, while  awaiting  his  return,  occupied  herself  with 
music;  and  the  instruments  she  had  learned  to  play  only 
a  few  months  back,  she  performed  on  to  admiration. 
One  day  as  she  was  in  the  queen's  room  the  king  entered, 
his  face  covered  with  tears;  and  taking  his  daughter's 
hand:  "Oh!  my  child,"  said  he;  "oh,  unfortunate 
father,  unlucky  king,  that  I  am!"  He  could  say  no 
more,  sighs  choked  his  utterance;  the  queen  and  princess, 
dreadfully  frightened,  asked  him  what  was  the  matter; 
after  awhile  he  told  them  that  a  monstrous  giant  had 
just  arrived,  calling  himself  ambassador  from  the  dragon 
of  the  lake,  who,  pursuant  to  the  promise  exacted  by  him 
from  the  king  for  aiding  him  to  fight  and  conquer  the 
monsters,  was  come  to  demand  the  Princess  Moufette,  to 
the  end  of  eating  her  in  a  pie;  that  he  was  bound  by  a 
terrible  oath  to  give  him  whatever  he  should  ask  for — 
and  in  those  days  breaking  one's  word  was  unknown. 

On  hearing  the  sorrowful  news,  the  queen  uttered 
dreadful  cries,  folding  the  princess  in  her  arms.  -  "They 
shall  rather  take  my  life,"  said  she,  "than  persuade  me 
to  deliver  my  daughter  to  the  monster;  let  him  take  our 
kingdom  and  all  that  we  possess.  Unnatural  father, 
could  you  consent  to  such  a  Shocking  barbarity?  What! 
make  my  child  into  a  pie!  •  Ah!  I  cannot  endure  the 
thought;  send  the  cruel  ambassador  here;  perhaps  my 
grief  may  soften  him." 

The  king  made  no  reply,  but  went  to  speak  to  the 
giant,  and  led  him  to  the  queen's  presence.  She  threw 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  143 

herself  at  his  feet,  and  with  her  daughter  conjured  him 
to  have  pity  on  them,  and  persuade  the  dragon  to  take 
all  they  had  but  save  Moufette's  life;  but  he  answered 
that  that  did  not  at  all  depend  on  him,  and  that  the 
dragon  was  too  obstinate  and  too  dainty;  that  when  he 
took  it  into  his  head  to  eat  any  delicate  morsel  the  gods 
themselves  could  not  remove  his  longing;  that  he  coun- 
seled them  as  a  friend  to  do  the  thing  with  a  good  grace, 
as  otherwise  the  most  dreadful  misfortunes  might  follow. 
At  these  words  the  queen  fainted  away,  and  the  princess 
would  have  done  so  likewise,  only  her  assistance  was  nec- 
essary to  her  mother. 

This  sorrowful  news  was  no  sooner  spread  in  the  palace 
than  it  became  known  to  all  the  town;  nothing  was  heard 
but  weeping  and  groans,  for  Moufette  was  adored.  The 
king  could  not  decide  to  give  her  to  the  giant;  and  the 
giant,  who  had  already  been  staying  several  days,  began 
to  get  tired,  and  threatened  in  a 'dreadful  manner.  How- 
ever, the  king  and  queen  said:  "What  worse  can  happen 
to  us?  When  the  dragon  of  the  lake  comes  to  devour 
us  we  shall  be  no  longer  afflicted;  but  if  our  Moufette  is 
made  into  a  pie  we  shall  be  undone."  Thereupon  the 
giant  informed  them  that  he  had  received  news  from  his 
master,  and  that  if  the  princess  was  willing  to  marry  a 
certain  nephew  of  his,  he  consented  to  allow  her  to  live; 
for  the  rest,  that  the  nephew  was  a  very  handsome  prince, 
and  that  she  might  live  very  happily  with  him. 

This  proposal  soothed  a  little  their  majesties' grief;  the 
queen  spoke  to  the  princess,  but  she  found  her  still  more 
averse  to  this  marriage  than  to  death.  "I  am  incapa- 
ble, madam,"  said  Moufette,  "of  preserving  my  life  by 
an  act  of  infidelity;  you  promised  me  Prince  Moufy,  and 
I  will  never  marry  any  other.  Let  me  die;  the  close  of 
my  life  will  secure  the  peace  of  your  own."  The  king 
entered;  he  said  to  his  daughter  all  that  the  fondest  ten- 
derness could  dictate;  she  remained  unchanged  in  her 
sentiments;  and  finally  it  was  resolved  to  conduct  her  to 
the  summit  of  a  high  mountain,  whence  the  dragon  of 
the  lake  was  to  come  and  fetch  her. 

Everything  was  prepared  for  this  sorrowful  sacrifice; 
the  sacrifices  of  Iphigenia  and  of  Psyche  could  not  have 
been  more  mournful;  nothing  was  to  be  seen  but  black 
clothes  and  pale  and  doleful  countenances.  Four  hun* 


144  OLD>  OLI>  FAIRY  TALES. 


dred  young  ladies  of  the  highest  quality  dressed  them- 
selves in  long  white  garments,  and  put  on  cypress  crowns, 
to  accompany  her;  she  was  carried  in  a  black  velvet 
open  sedan,  so  that  everybody  might  behold  this  master- 
piece of  beauty;  her  hair  was  scattered  over  her  shoul- 
ders, and  tied  with  crape,  and  the  crown  on  her  head 
was  of  jasmine  and  marigold.  She  only  appeared  moved 
by  the  grief  of  the  king  and  queen,  who  were  following, 
overwhelmed  with  the  most  profound  grief.  The  giant, 
armed  at  all  points,  marched  by  the  side  of  the  princess' 
sedan,  and  looking  at  her  with  a  greedy  eye,  seemed  as 
though  he  felt  pretty  certain  of  eating  his  share  of  her. 
The  air  resounded  with  sighs  and  sobs;  the  road  was 
flooded  with  the  tears  that  were  shed. 

"Ah,  frog,  frog!"  cried  the  queen,  "you  have  aban- 
doned me!  Alas!  Why  did  you  grant  me  your  assist- 
ance in  the  gloomy  plain,  if  you  refuse  it  at  present? 
Happy  should  I  have  been  had  I  died  there!  I  should 
not  then  have  seen  all  my  hopes  deceived  to-day!  I 
should  not  have  seen  my  dear  Moufette  on  the  point  of 
being  devoured.5* 

While  she  was  making  these  lamentations  they  still 
kept  moving  forward,  walking,  however,  very  slowly,  and 
at  last  they  arrived  at  the  summit  of  the  fatal  mountain. 
There  they  redoubled  their  cries  and  sorrow  to  such  a 
degree  that  nothing  ever  was  so  mournful,  the  giant  re- 
quested everybody  to  bid  the  princess  adieu  and  return. 
The}  retired  immediately,  for  in  those  days  people  were 
very  unsophisticated,  and  always  did  what  they  could  not 
help  doing  with  a  good  grace. 

The  king  and  queen,  when  they  had  reached  some  dis- 
tance, ascended  another  mountain  with  all  their  court, 
that  they  might  thence  observe  all  that  happened  to  the 
princess;  in  effect  they  had  not  been  there  long  before 
they  saw  a  dragon  nearly  a  mile  and  a  half  long  in  the  air; 
although  he  had  six  large  wings,  his  body  was  so  heavy 
that  he  could  hardly  fly,  and  it  was  covered  with  large 
blue  scales  and  long  fiery  darts,  his  tail  being  disposed  in 
hfty  folds  and  a  half;  each  of  his  claws  was  as  large  as  a 
windmill,  and  inside  his  open  jaws  was  a  triple  row  of 
teeth  as  large  as  those  of  an  elephant. 

But  as  he  was  gradually  advancing,  the  dear  and  faith- 
ful frog,  mounted  on  a  sparrow-hawk,  flew  rapidly  toward 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  145 

Prince  Moufy.  She  wore  her  wreath  of  roses,  and 
though  he  was  locked  in  his  closet  she  entered  it  without 
a  key.  "What  are  you  doing  here,  unfortunate  lover?" 
said  she.  "You  are  dreaming  of  the  charms  of  Moufette, 
who  is  at  this  moment  exposed  to  the  most  terrible  mis- 
fortune; here,  then,  is  a  rose-leaf;  by  blowing  on  it  I  will 
transform  it  into  an  excellent  horse,  as  you  shall  see." 
Immediately  a  white  horse  made  his  appearance.  She 
gave  him  a  sword,  six  ells  in  length,  and  lighter  than  a 
feather:  she  clothed  him  in  a  single  diamond,  which 
fitted  him  like  a  suit  of  clothes:  and  although  it  was 
harder  than  a  rock,  it  was  so  flexible  than  it  did  not  the 
least  constrain  his  motions  in  any  respect. 

"Depart,"  said  Grenouilletta  to  him;  "run,  fly  to  the 
defense  of  her  whom  you  love;  the  horse  which  I  give 
you  will  take  yon  where  she  is;  when  you  have  effected 
her  deliverance  inform  her  of  the  share  I  have  had  in  it." 

"Generous  fairy,"  cried  the  prince,  "I  cannot  at  pres- 
ent manifest  all  my  gratitude;  but  I  declare  that  I  will 
always  be  your  very  faithful  slave." 

He  mounted  his  horse,  which  immediately  galloped  off, 
and  made  better  speed  than  three  of  the  best  hunters;  so 
that  he  arrived  in  a  very  short  time  at  the  summit  of  the 
mountain,  where  he  saw  his  dear  princess  by  herself,  and 
the  frightful  dragon  slowly  drawing  near.  He  became 
furious,  and  attempted  to  spring  upon  the  prince;  but 
the  six-ells-long  sword  was  of  so  good  a  temper  that  he 
could  handle  it  just  as  he  liked,  sometimes  burying  it  up 
to  the  hilt  in  the  monster's  body,  and  at  others  using  it 
as  a  whip.  The  prince  would  not  have  failed  to  feel  the 
strength  of  his  claws,  but  for  the  diamond  dress,  which 
was  impenetrable. 

Moufette  had  recognized  him  a  long  way  off;  for  the 
diamond  which  covered  him  was  very  bright  and  clear, 
so  that  she  was  seized  with  the  most  mortal  apprehension 
of  which  woman  is  susceptible:  but  the  king  and  queen 
began  to  feel  in  their  heart  a  few  rays  of  hope;  for  it  was 
very  extraordinary  to  see  a  horse  and  a  prince  in  a  dia- 
mond case,  armed  with  a  formidable  sword,  arrive  at  so 
opportune  a  moment,  and  fight  with  so  much  bravery. 
The  king  put  his  hat  on  his  walking-stick,  and  the  queen 
fastened  her  handkerchief  to  the  end  of  a  piece  of  wood, 
to  make  signs  to  the  prince  and  encourage  him.  All 


OLD,  OLD  FAIR7  TALES.  147 

their  cortege  did  the  same  But,  in  fact,  it  was  unneces- 
sary; his  courage  alone,  and  the  peril  to  which  he  saw  his 
mistress  exposed,  was  sufficient  to  excite  him. 

What  mighty  efforts  he  made!  the  earth  was  strewed 
with  darts,  claws,  horns,  wings  and  scales  of  the  dragon; 
his  blood  flowed  from  a  thousand  wounds;  it  was  quite 
blue,  and  the  horse's  was  quite  green,  which  made  a 
singular  combination  of  colors  on  the  ground.  The 
prince  fell  five  times,  always  rising  again  himself;  he 
watched  his  opportunity  to  remount  his  horse,  and  then 
such  fighting  ensued  that  nothing  was  ever  like  it.  At 
last  the  dragon's  strength  was  exhausted,  he  fell,  and  the 
prince  dealt  him  a  wound  which  left  a  fearful  gash;  and 
what  is  almost  incredible,  but  is  nevertheless  as  true  as 
the  rest  of  the  tale,  is,  that  the  most  beautiful  and 
charming  prince  that  was  ever  seen  issued  forth  from 
that  large  wound;  his  coat  was  of  blue  velvet  with  a  gold 
ground,  embroidered  all  over  with  pearls;  on  his  head  he 
wore  a  little  Greek  morion,  shaded  with  white  feathers. 
He  ran  with  open  arms,  and,  embracing  Prince  Moufy, 
"What  do  I  not  owe  you,  my  generous  liberator,"  said 
he  to  him — "you  who  have  just  delivered  me  from  the 
most  frightful  prison  that  ever  monarch  was  confined  in! 
I  was  condemned  to  that  punishment  by  the  Fairy  Lion- 
ess; sixteen  years  have  I  languished  there:  and  her  power 
was  such  that,  in  spite  of  my  own  will,  she  would  have 
forced  me  to  devour  this  adorable  princess;  conduct  me 
to  her  feet,  that  I  may  explain  my  misfortune." 

Prince  Moufy,  surprised  and  delighted  with  so  astound- 
ing an  adventure,  was  in  no  respect  behind  this  prince 
in  complaisance;  they  hastened  to  join  the  beautiful 
Mouf-ette,  who  for  her  part  thanked  the  gods  a  thousand 
times  for  so  unexpected  a  happiness.  The  king,  queen, 
and  all  the  court  were  already  near  her;  they  were  all 
speaking  at  once,  not  one  of  them  being  able  to  distin- 
guish what  the  others  said;  there  were  almost  as  many 
tears  shed  for  joy  as  there  had  been  recently  shed  for 
grief.  At  last,  that  nothing  might  be  wanting  to  the 
happiness  of  all  present,  the  good  frog  appeared  in  the 
air,  mounted  on  a  sparrow-hawk,  which  had  little  golden 
bells  attached  to  its  feet.  When  they  heard  the  tinkle, 
tinkle,  they  all  looked  up;  they  saw  her  wreath  of  roses 
shine  like  a  little  sun,  the  frog  herself  being  as  beautiful 


148  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

as  Aurora.  The  queen  advanced  toward  her,  and  took 
one  of  her  little  paws;  then  the  wise  frog  metamorphosed 
herself,  and  appeared  like  a  noble  queen;  her  face  was 
the  most  agreeable  in  the  world.  "I  come,"  cried  she, 
"to  crown  the  fidelity  of  the  Princess  Moufette:  she  pre- 
ferred exposing  her  life  to  changing  her  sentiments;  this 
example  is  rare  in  the  present  period,  but  it  will  be  much 
more  so  in  the  ages  to  come." 

She  then  took  two  myrtle  crowns,  and  with  them 
crowned  the  happy  pair  who  loved  each  other  so  tenderly; 
and  making  three  strokes  with  her  wand  all  the  bones  of 
the  dragon  rose  and  formed  a  triumphal  arch,  in  com- 
memoration of  the  important  event  which  had  just  taken 
place. 

Then  that  fair  and  numerous  troop  journeyed  toward 
the  city,  singing  wedding-songs,  with  as  much  gayety  as 
they  had  sorrowfully  mourned  the  sacrifice  of  the  prin- 
cess. The  wedding  was  only  deferred  until  the  next  day; 
it  may  be  easily  imagined  with  what  joy  it  was  celebrated. 


THE  STORY  OF  PRINCE   SINCERE. 

THERE  was  once  upon  a  time,  in  the  country  of  Zinzol- 
antines,  a  king  who  had  an  extreme  passion  for  silk- 
worms; he  spent  whole  days  in  his  gardens  gathering 
mulberry  leaves  for  their  nourishment;  the  remainder  of 
his  time  he  spent  in  his  closet,  watching  those  little  ani- 
mals at  work,  and  making  skeins  of  the  silk  they  had 
spun;  for  he  could  find  no  one  to  do  this  to  his  satisfac- 
tion: in  fact,  no  one  could  perform  this  office  so  well  as 
his  majesty.  He  frequently  made  presents  of  his  skeins 
to  the  lords  of  his  court,  most  of  them,  of  course,  silk- 
worm fanciers,  as  they,  like  all  true  courtiers,  gloried  in 
imitating  their  sovereign.  Now,  what  was  the  conse- 
quence of  all  this?  Politeness  and  wit  abandoned  an 
abode  where  they  were  so  slightly  esteemed;  rudeness 
and  folly  seized  upon  the  youth  of  the  court;  and  weari- 
ness or  ennui  fell  to  the  lot  of  its  fairest  ladies.  Hope- 
less of  having  their  charms  and  accomplishments  appre- 
ciated by  men  who  only  understood  and  admired  the 
beauty  of  silkworms  and  the  fineness  of  their  silk,  nearly 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


149 


all  the  ladies  retired  into  the  distant  provinces  of  the 
kingdom.  In  one  these  there  was  formed  a  little  court, 
not  of  princes,  not  of  dukes,  nor  even  of  marquises  (from 
all  of  these  ranks  the  ladies  had  experienced  too  much 
neglect  and  rudeness),  but  of  persons  of  a  less  elevated 
grade;  who,  possessing  none  of  the  above  titles,  were 
not  the  less  worthy  men  on  that  account.  At  this  little 
court  were  to  be  found  refined  tastes  and  virtuous  prin- 


ciples; its  inhabitants  cultivated  the  sciences,  and  en- 
joyed all  reasonable  pleasures  without  ever  banishing  that 
delicacy  which  constitutes  their  principal  charm;  in  a 
word,  they  were  in  all  things  the  exact  reverse  of  those 
who  composed  the  court  of  his  silk-winding  majesty, 
from  which  the  queen  was  one  of  the  first  who  retired. 
She  had  a  very  fine  castle,  situated  in  a  forest  near  the 
seashore;  this  castle  she  chose  for  her  residence:  and 
having  bade  the  king  adieu,  to  whom  her  departure 
caused  no  great  uneasiness,  she  set  out,  accompanied  by 
the  two  princesses  who  were  the  sole  fruits  of  her  mar- 
riage with  the  king,  and  a  few  of  her  attendants,  of  whose 
zeal  and  affection  she  was  assured. 

The  solitude  of  the  castle  did  not  clisgusther;  she  em- 
bellished it  by  tasteful  improvements  and  made  it  a 
charming  abode  by  uniting  within  and  about  it  some  of 


150  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

the  most  beautiful  objects  of  nature,  and  the  most  per- 
fect productions  of  art.  Surrounded  by  persons  whom 
she  loved,  she  enjoyed  in  this  retirement  a  tranquil  re- 
pose to  which  she  had  before  been  a  stranger.  The 
princesses  also  were  delighted  with  their  abode.  They 
were  fond  of  music,  and  among  their  train  were  several 
who  cultivated  that  art  with  the  most  brilliant  success. 
These  two  young  ladies  were  equally  beautiful  in  face  as 
in  figure;  yet  were  they  not  equally  amiable.  The  elder, 
whose  name  was  Katherine,  was  proud,  envious,  revenge- 
ful, and  cruel,  The  younger  was  gentle  and  affection- 
ate; and  her  greatest  pleasure  was  to  oblige.  In  her 
heart  and  in  her  mind  she  had  a  thousand  charming  qual- 
ities, which  made  her  beloved  by  all  who  had  the  happi- 
ness to  know  her;  she  consequently  deserved  the  char- 
acteristic name  of  Amy.  She  was  affectionately  attached 
to  her  sister,  though  she  was  not  ignorant  that  she  was 
disliked  by  her. 

One  day,  after  enduring  a  torrent  of  reproaches  from 
Katherine,  because  she  would  not  appear  in  an  unsuitable 
dress  at  a  masked  ball  at  which  a  numerous  assemblage 
was  expected,  Amy  took  a  solitary  walk  by  the  seashore 
to  dissipate  the  sorrow  that  her  sister's  ill-humor  had 
engendered.  Katherine,  filled  with  anger  at  her  sister's 
non-compliance  with  her  wishes,  went  also  to  walk  in  a 
neighboring  forest,  that  she  might  devise  a  dress  to  ap- 
pear in  at  the  ball  which  should  eclipse  in  brilliancy  that 
of  Amy.  Filled  with  these  thoughts,  she  had  walked 
some  distance  from  the  castle"  without  perceiving  that 
she  had  gone  much  further  than  she  had  intended. 
Weariness  at  length  obliged  her  to  seat  herself  at  the 
foot  of  an  old  oak  tree,  whose  foliage  formed  a  shade  im- 
penetrable to  the  rays  of  the  sun.  Accidentally  examining 
the  immense  size  and  thickness  of  the  trunk  of  this  oak, 
Katherine  discovered  a  little  key  concealed  between  the 
bark  and  the  wood;  she  took  it  in  her  hand,  unable  to 
divine  what  could  be  its  use,  and  why  it  was  there;  and 
then  endeavored  to  replace  it.  After  trying  to  do  so  two 
or  three  times  unsuccessful!}',  she  pushed  the  key  into  a 
hole  that  she  observed,  when  immediately  the  key 
turned  round  of  itself;  a  little  door  flew  open  which  was 
sunk  in  the  tree  with  infinite  art;  and  the  door  being 
open  discovered  a  staircase.  Katherine,  curious  to  know 


OLD..  OLD  FAinr  1ALES.  151 

where  it  could  lead,  determined  to  descend:  the  first 
steps  were  very  obscure;  but  as  she  descended  she 
noticed  with  surprise  that  the  staircase  was  lighted  by 
numerous  waxen  tapers  placed  in  rock  crystal  lusters. 
The  princess  continued  to  descend;  and,  having  gone 
down  more  than  three  hundred  steps,  she  came  to  a  mag- 
nificently furnished  apartment.  It  will  be  said  that  it 
is  astonishing  and  almost  impossible  that  a  young  person 
of  her  sex  should  be  sufficiently  adventurous  thus  to  enter 
alone  into  an  unknown  cavern;  but  I  must  inform  my 
readers  of  a  fact  of  which  I  possess  undoubted  evidence, 
which  will  cause  their  wonder  to  cease,  namely,  that 
Katherine  wore  on  her  little  finger  a  ring  that  had  been 
bequeathed  to  her  by  her  grandfather  on  his  deathbed, 
which  would  preserve  her,  until  her  twentieth  year,  from 
every  species  of  danger.  Persuaded,  therefore,  that  she 
had  nothing  to  fear,  she  walked  onward  until  she  came 
to  a  large  cabinet,  or  rather  a  storeroom,  of  rare  jewels 
and  precious  stones.  Katherine  paused  to  examine  the 
rarities  she  saw  around  her;  when  her  eye,  chancing  to 
alight  on  a  bed  of  cloth  of  silver  standing  in  a  kind  of 
recess  or  grotto,  what  was  her  astonishment  to  observe, 
posing  thereon,  the  handsomest  young  man  she  had  ever 
beheld;  he  seemed  to  "be  buried  in  a  profound  sleep. 
Katherine  approached  to  consider  the  sleeper  more  at- 
tentively. This  curiosity  cost  her  dearly,  for  from  that 
moment  she  was  no  longer  mistress  of  herself.  Convinced 
(as  all  pretty  women  are)  that  no  one  could  see  her  with- 
out loving  her,  she  did  not  hesitate  to  awaken  the  charm- 
ing unknown,  with  the  hope  of  inspiring  him  with  that 
tenderness  which  she  already  felt  for  him.  Accordingly, 
she  made  a  slight  noise  in  passing  into  the  next  apart- 
ment, so  that  he  might  not  think  she  had  awakened  him 
designedly.  On  entering  this  room  she  found  a  written 
paper  containing  the  following  words: 

"She,  only,  who  shall  be  able  to  inspire  the  ugliest  of 
mortals  with  the  passion  of  love,  can  make  an  impression 
on  the  heart  of  the  prince  who  reposes  here." 

The  Princess  Katherine  perused  this  paper  several 
times,  and  flattered  herself  that  her  charms  were  quite 
powerful  enough  to  affect  the  sleepar,  without  her  being 
obliged  to  seek  out  the  ugliest  of  men,  in  order  to  inspire 
him  with  a  hopeless  passion.  Filled  with  this  self-con- 


152  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

fideuce,  she  was  about  to  re-enter  the  cabinet,  not  doubt- 
ing that  she  should  find  the  unknown  awake;  when  a 
spider's  web,  through  which  it  was  impossible  to  see  any 
object  distinctly,  opposed  her  ingress  directly  she  ap- 
proached the  door.  "So  slight  an  obstacle  shall  not  pre- 
sent my  entrance,"  said  Katherine,  and  she  endeavored 
to  pass;  but,  notwithstanding  all  her  efforts,  she  could 
not  succeed  in  lifting  or  breaking  through  the  web. 
Astonished  to  find  such  strength  in  so  apparently  slight 
a  fabric,  she  resolved  to  reascend  into  the  forest,  to  re- 
turn to  the  queen,  and  have  a  search  made  for  this  ugli- 
est of  all  ugly  men,  whom  it  was  necessary  to  inspire  with 
love  ere  she  could  hope  to  be  beloved  by  the  charming 
person  she  had  just  seen.  Accordingly,  she  retraced  her 
steps  through  all  the  apartments,  ascended  the  staircase, 
passed  out  by  the  door  in  the  tree,  which  was  remaining 
open  as  she  had  left  it;  and  no  sooner  was  she  in  the 
open  air  than  the  door  closed  of  itself  so  effectually  that 
she  could  not  observe  exactly  where  it  was,  nor  could  she 
find  the  little  key  again.  She  walked  several  times 
round  the  oak  with  this  view,  but  she  could  not  succeed. 
Desperate  at  this  last  circumstance,  she  turned  toward 
the  castle:  and,  as  she  was  walking  on  the  seashore,  ob- 
served the  Princess  Amy,  her  sister,  attentively  examin- 
ing a  diamond  of  surprising  size  and  beauty — a  bird  had 
just  let  it  fall  on  her  dress,  telling  her  to  keep  it  very 
carefully,  as  it  would  one  day  preserve  her  in  a  moment 
of  great  danger.  Katherine,  enchanted  with  the  beauty 
of  this  admirable  jewel,  wished  to  have  it  in  her  posses- 
sion; but  attempting  to  snatch  it  from  Amy,  she  was  pre- 
vented by  a  little  man  from  behind  her,  whose  frightful 
appearance  made  both  the  princesses  take  flight,  and  run 
for  shelter  into  the  forest. 

The  little  man  was  three  feet  high;  his  very  large  and 
flat  head  was  thatched  with  lank  red  hair;  his  eyes  were 
sunk  in  his  head,  and  of  such  small  dimensions  that  they 
would  have  been  indistinguishable  but  for  the  bright  red 
with  which  they  were  bordered;  his  nose  was  red  and 
pointed;  his  cheeks  hung  as  low  as  his  breast,  and  his 
mouth  and  chin  were  graced  by  a  long  and  bushy  red 
beard.  His  ill-shapen  body  was  supported  by  a  single 
leg,  on  which  it  was  balanced  as  on  a  pivot;  but  so  nice 
was  its  equilibrium  that  the  slightest  breath  of  wind  made 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRT  TALES.  153 

it  turn  round  continually,  for  which  reason  he  went  out 
in  very  calm  weather  only.  He  did  not  walk  at  all,  but 
hopped  with  wonderful  agility;  and,  by  many  little  hops, 
he  soon  arrived  wherever  he  wished  to  go.  Katherine, 
recovered  from  the  fear  that  the  little  monster  had  occa- 
sioned her,  soon  returned  to  him;  and  in  an  ill-humored 
tone  asked  who  he  was,  and  what  could  have  made  him 
daring  enough  to  oppose  her  desires. 

"I  am  a  powerful  king,"  answered  the  deformed,  "and 
my  name  is  Sincere;  reasons,  which  I  cannot  disclose  to 
you,  have  banished  me  for  a  time  from  my  dominions; 
and  have  obliged  me  to  pass  my  time  in  the  hollow  of  a 
rock,  situated  not  very  far  from  hence.  I  have  seen  you 
several  times  in  this  charming  neighborhood.  I  have 
frequently  noticed  your  unkind  proceedings  toward  the 
princess,  your  sister;  and  I  have  only  just  prevented 
another  in  jury  you  would  have  committed  in  taking  from 
her  a  diamond,  which  is  her  property.  My  natural  love 
of  justice,  joined  to  an  impulse  that  I  dare  not  declare, 
induced  me  to  take  your  sister's  part,  and  to  prevent  your 
doing  her  that  wrong.". 

Katherine  heard  the  prince's  long  answer  to  her  ques- 
tion with  extreme  impatience;  however,  she  dissembled 
her  anger,  on  reflecting  that  the  speaker  could  not  pos- 
sibly be  equaled  for  ugliness,  and  that  consequently  she 
ought  to  neglect  nothing  to  please  him;  since  it  was 
written,  that  on  that  condition  only  could  she  inspire  a 
passion  for  herself  in  the  person  whom  she  now  so  dearly 
loved. 

Accordingly,  assuming  a  more  gentle  air,  she  told  Sin- 
cere that  the  rank  of  king,  and  the  unfortunate  condition 
to  which  he  appeared  to  be  reduced,  compelled  her  to 
pardon  him;  that  she  even  desired  the  honor  of  his  friend- 
ship, which  she  flattered  herself  he  would  not  refuse. 
She  then  invited  him  to  the  castle,  assuring  him  that  the 
queen,  when  she  should  learn  his  quality,  would  doubt- 
less offer  him  apartments  in  which  he  might  tranquilly 
reside,  until  fortune  should  cease  to  persecute  him.,  The 
king  politely  thanked  her;  and  told  her  that  he  was  too 
well  aware  of  his  excessive  ugliness  to  dare  to  flatter  him- 
self with  the  hope  of  chaining  the  friendship  of  so  beau- 
tiful a  princess;  or  of  residing  at  a  court  where  he  knew 
that  the  deformity  of  his  figure  could  never  be  forgiven. 


154  0£A  OLD  FAIRY  TALEB. 

Having  expressed  himself  to  this  effect,  the  king  made 
Katherine  a  bow  and  hopped  away,  sighing,  and  looking 
toward  the  amiable  Amy,  whom  the  presence  of  her  sis- 
ter had  kept  at  a  short  distance  during  this  conference. 
Amy  had,  however,  overheard  her  sister's  conversation 
with  Sincere,  and  had  been  as  much  surprised  at  the 
affected  kindness  of  the  Princess  Katherine  as  at  her 
having  invited  him  to  the  castle;  she  therefore  reluc- 
tantly concluded  that  the  princess  had  only  assumed  a 
show  of  mildness  as  a  cloak  to  some  wicked  design.  The 
pity  that  Amy  felt  for  all  who  were  unforunate  made  her 
resolve  immediately  to  warn  the  king  that  he  should  not 
place  too  much  confidence  in  her  sister's  apparent  friend- 
ship; and  it  was  with  some  impatience  she  perceived  that 
her  engagements  would  compel  her  to  defer  until  the 
morrow  the  execution  of  her  project.  But  the  next  day, 
accompanied  by  a  female  attendant,  Amy  left  the  castle 
and  took  the  road  leading  toSincere's  rock;  at  which  she 
had  nearly  arrived  when  she  hear.d  some  one  singing  a 
song,  the  words  of  which  appeared  to  be  addressed  to 
herself.  She  stopped  to  listen.  The  tone  of  the  voice 
she  heard  was  so  melodious,  and  so  pleased  her  ear,  that 
she  remained  riveted  to  the  spot  for  some  time  after  the 
song  had  ceased;  until  Cicely,  her  attendant,  dispelled 
her  reverie  by  informing  her  that  Sincere  was  coming  to- 
ward them. 

Although  Amy  had  made  up  her  mind  to  regard  him 
without  fear,  she  nevertheless  found  that  she  could  not 
look  upon  him  without  trembling,  and  immediately 
turned  away  her  face.  Sincere  appeared  to  observe  her 
emotion  with  sorrow;  but,  saluting  her  very  respectfully, 
he  invited  her  to  walk  into  his  rustic  palace  to  repose 
herself.  Amy  accepted  his  courtesy,  telling  his  majesty 
at  the  same  time  that  she  had  come  purposely  to  his 
grotto  that  she  might  inform  him  of  something  of  great 
importance.  The  king  offered  her  his  hand  as  gracefully 
as  he  could,  and  led  her  toward  his  groLto,  entertaining 
her  with  the  most  lively  conversation.  The  princess 
could  never  have  imagined  a  person  so  ugly  as  Prince 
Sincere  with  a  mind  so  lively  and  penetrating.  Every- 
thing he  said,  too,  was  pronounced  in  a  tone  that  so 
charmed  the  princess  that  she  could  not  help  wishing 
over  and  over  again  that  if  ever  she  had  a  lover  he  might 


OLDt  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  155 

be  possessed  of  the  intelligence  and  graceful  spirit  of 
this  unfortunate.  At  last  she  came  to  the  rock  which 
contained  Sincere's  grotto.  It  was  carpeted  with  soft 
green  moss;  within  it  was  a  table  formed  by  a  slab  of 
white  marble,  of  which  nature  had  been  the  only  artificer; 
while  a  bed  and  a  few  turf  seats  were  the  only  furniture 
that  Sincere's  residence  contained.  A  cascade  of  fresh 
and  pure  water  fell  from  the  height  of  the  rock,  and 
formed  a  small  streamlet,  whose  gentle  murmur,  with  the 
melodious  songs  of  the  nightingales  perched  among  the 
branches  of  an  orange-tree  laden  with  blossoms  and  fruit, 
sounded  more  charmingly  in  the  princess'  ears  than  the 
finest  concert  she  had  ever  heard. 

After  praising  his  pleasant  retreat,  Amy  unfolded  to 
Sincere  her  reasons  for  paying  him  this  visit.  The 
prince,  charmed  at  the  interest  she  took  in  what  con- 
cerned himself,  was  very  eloquent  in  the  expressions  of 
his  gratitude;  some  words  even  escaped  him  which  made 
it  sufficiently  apparent  that  his  heart  was  filled  with  the 
most  tender  love.  Amy  remarked  them,  but  feigned  not 
to  understand  that  they  were  addressed  to  herself;  and, 
by  way  of  changing  the  subject  of  conversation,  she  in- 
formed the  king  with  what  satisfaction  she  had  overheard 
a  charming  voice  shortly  before  she  saw  him,  and  asked 
him  if  he  were  acquainted  with  the  person  who  sang  so 
well. 

"It  is  a  prince  who  adores  you,"  answered  Sincere, 
"and  who  would  make  you  an  offer  of  his  heart,  his  hand, 
and  the  crown  that  he  will  one  day  wear;  but  that  his 
form  forbids  him  to  hope."  Sincere  sighed  as  he  said 
these  words. 

The  princess  blushed,  and  not  doubting  that  it  was 
of  himself  he  spoke,  questioned  him  no  further,  and 
became  very  thoughtful;  shortly  afterward  she  quitted 
the  grotto,  fearful  that  her  absence  might  be  noticed. 
She  walked  in  the  direction  of  the  palace,  observing  to 
Cicely  that  she  thought  Sincere  was  a  very  intelligent 
man.  "I  protest,  my  dear  Cicely,"  said  she,  "I  feel  for 
him,  notwithstanding  his  deformity,  what  I  never  felt  for 
any  one  before." 

"What,  madam!"  said  the  astonished  attendant,  "is  it 
possible  that  you  can  regard  the  little  monster  with  any 
other  feeling  than  horror;  nay,  that  you  should  even  feel 


156  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

anything  like  affection  for  such  a  creature?  Surely  you 
could  never  resolve  to  live  with  him?  What  could  you 
do  with  so  hideous  a  being?  The  smallest  wind  makes 
him  turn  round  like  a  weathercock." 

"Ah!"  said  the  young  Princess  Amy,  "but  then  he 
thinks  with  such  vivacity,  and  speaks  with  so  much  elo- 
quence, that  I  should  prefer  him  to  the  handsomest  man 
in  the  world.  Handsome  men  are  nearly  always  wretch- 
edly stupid  and  too  much  in  love  with  themselves;  they 
pay  greater  devotion  to  their  looking-glasses  than  to  our 
sex — "  The  princess  would  have  continued,  but  at  that 
moment  she  heard  a  cry  that  stopped  her;  and  looking 
on  the  ground,  she  sa*v,  with  much  surprise,  a  white 
viper,  darting  fire  from  its  eyes,  which  spoke  to  her  as 
follows:  "Madam,  you  were  about  to  crush  me  beneath 
your  feet;  if  I  were  not  so  forgiving  as  I  am,  I  should 
punish  you  for  your  thoughtlessness;  but  I  pardon  you, 
on  condition  that  you  place  me  on  the  trunk  of  the  large 
chestnut-tree  near  you,  from  the  branches  of  which  I 
have  just  fallen.  One  of  these  days  I  shall  acknowledge 
the  service,  for  I  am  a  fairy;  though,  in  common  with  all 
my  sisters,  lam  obliged  to  quit  my  natural  shape  one  day 
in  every  week,  and  assume  that  form  which  may  be  or- 
dained by  an  old  sorcerer,  from  whom  we  derive  our 
power;  and  who  punishes  us  in  this  way  for  having,  one 
day  while  he  slept,  cut  off  his  beard  and  mustachios, 
which  were  extremely  displeasing  objects.  This  evening 
I  shall  resume  my  usual  form,  and  you  will  hear  from 
me."  Amy  took  the  viper  tremblingly  in  her  hand  when 
it  had  ceased  to  speak,  placed  it  on  the  tree,  and  hastily 
left  the  spot,  unwilling  to  look  again  on  an  animal  that 
had  caused  her  so  much  fear.  She  then  made  the  best 
of  her  way  to  the  castle,  where,  on  arriving,  she  learned 
that  Katherine  had  just  dispatched  a  courier  with  a  mes- 
sage from  the  queen,  inviting  King  Sincere  to  come  and 
spend  a  few  days  at  the  palace.  This  at  first  alarmed 
Amy,  who  was  acquainted  with  her  sister's  wickedness; 
but  her  uneasiness  was  soon  dissipated,  for  one  of  Kath- 
erme's  attendants,  to  whom  that  princess  had  corafided. 
her  adventure,  informed  her  of  what  had  taken  place  in 
the  forest. 

Sincere  was,  as  you  may  suppose,  surprised  at  the 
queen's  invitation.  •  His  first  impulse  was  courteously  to 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  15? 

refuse  it;  but,  on  reflecting  that  by  accepting  it  he  would 
be  enabled  to  see  the  beautiful  princess  with  whom  he 
was  in  love  every  day,  he  resolved  to  set  out,  and  hopped 
into  a  little  calash  that  had  been  sent  for  his  accommo- 
dation. His  arrival  was  awaited  at  the  castle  with  great 
impatience,  arising,  however,  from  widely  different  mo- 
tives: the  ladies  of  the  court  being  curious  to  see  a  man 
who  was  unlike  all  other  men;  Katherine  anxious  to 
make  a  conquest  of  him,  for  the  sake  of  gaining  the 
sleeper;  and  Amy  looking  for  his  arrival  in  the  hope  of 
enabling  the  wretched  man  to  pass  at  least  some  days 
agreeably. 

At  last  he  arrived,  and  was  received  with  all  the  honors 
due  to  his  rank.  Katherine,  who  welcomed  him  very 
benignantly,  was  magnificently  dressed,  and  looked  so 
well  that,  but  for  her  sister,  she  might  have  been  pro- 
nounced the  most  beautiful  woman  in  the  universe.  She 
was  therefore  much  mortified  to  observe  that,  in  spite  of  all 
her  blandishments,  Sincere  was  insensible  to  her  charms, 
and  that  his  regards  were  constantly  directed  toward 
Amy.  Her  anger  was  boundless  to  think  that,  having 
done  all  in  her  power  to  please  the  ugliest  man  in  the 
world,  she  was  yet  unable  to  succeed.  Whatever  offends 
the  self-love  of  the  ladies  is  never  forgiven;  accordingly, 
she  became  infuriated  against  the  prince  and  her  sister. 
What  would  she  not  have  given  to  have  prevented  their 
seeing  each  other!  However,  that  was  impossible;  for 
the  king,  being  at  liberty  to  speak  to  Amy,  availed  him- 
self of  every  opportunity  of  so  doing;  while.it  was  obvi- 
ous that  Amy  was  no  unwilling  auditor,  and  could  not 
deny  herself  the  pleasure  of  listening  to  Sincere. 

As  the  Princess  Amy  was  one  evening  walking  in  an 
avenue  in  the  park,  she  observed  a  ball  rolling  toward 
her  very  quickly:  it  stopped  directly  it  was  within  a  yard 
or  two  of  her,  and  opening  of  itself,  there  issued  from  it 
a  little  woman,  who  continued  to  increase  in  size  until 
she  was  ten  or  twelve  feet  high.  "I  am  the  Fairy 
Severe,"  said  she,  addressing  Amy,  "whom  you  were 
kind  enough  to  assist  a  few  days  ago."  Amy  recognized 
her,  for  the  fairy  darted  fire  from  her  eyes,  as  did  the 
white  viper  she  had  placed  upon  the  tree;  and,  accord- 
ingly, she  saluted  her  very  respectfully.  Severe  proceeded 
to  inform  Amy  that  the  friendship  she  felt  for  that  prin- 


153  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

cess  had  induced  her  to  demand  her  hand  in  marriage  of 
the  queen  for  the  King  of  the  Butterflies,  her  nephew, 
who  was  the  most  amiable  man  in  the  world.  "I  have 

1'ust  left  the  queen's  closet,"  concluded  the  fairy,  "and 
have  obtained  your  mother's  consent.  His  majesty  will 
arrive  here  in  two  or  three  days,  to  make  you  his  queen." 
This  information,  which  would  have  afforded  much 
pleasure  to  many  princesses,  sensibly  afflicted  the  young 
Amy;  she  was  so  much  grieved  at  hearing  it  that  she  was 
unable  to  utter  a  word  in  answer  to  the  fairy.  Severe, 
imagining  that  joy  prevented  her  speaking,  kissed  her 
forehead;  then,  bidding  her  adieu,  she  re-entered  her 
ball,  which  returned  in  the  direction  it  had  come. 

At  this  moment  Cicely  brought  the  princess  word  that 
the  queen  wished  to  speak  with  her:  accordingly,  she 
hastened  to  her  mother,  who,  without  giving  her  time  to 
speak,  ordered  her  to  prepare  herself  to  receive  the  King 
of  the  Butterflies  as  her  husband  at  the  end  of  two  days. 
Amy  threw  herself  at  her  mother's  feet,  and  conjured 
her  to  recall  the  promise  she  had  made  to  Severe.  The 
queen,  however,  was  inflexible;  she  dreaded  the  power  of 
the  fairies;  and  hopeful  that  Severe  would  one  day  con- 
fer on  her  some  mark  of  her  friendship,  she  told  her 
daughter  that  she  would  be  obeyed.  Amy  dared  not  re- 
ply, and  retired  in  deep  affliction.  Kathcrine,  who  at 
any  other  time  would  have  been  jealous  of  the  fairy's 
preference  for  her  sister,  was  delighted  at  the  intended 
match,  flattering  herself  that  when  Sincere  no  longer  saw 
Amy,  he  must  fall  in  love  with  herself.  This  sorrowful 
news  was  not  long  in  reaching  the  ears  of  that  unfortu- 
nate king,  and  it  affected  him  to  su.ch  a  degree  that  he 
fell  dangerously  ill.  Meanwhile,  the  day  arrived  on  which 
the  fairy's  nephew  was  to  be  presented.  The  queen,  the 
princesses,  and  all  the  court  went  out  to  receive  him;  and 
had  no  sooner  reached  the  terrace  than  they  perceived 
afar  off  a  very  brilliant-looking  kind  of  cloud,  which  was 
rapidly  approaching  the  castle.  It  immediately  struck 
them  that  this  must  be  the  prince;  and  the  conjecture 
proved  to  be  well-founded;  the  King  of  the  Butterflies 
was  coming,  seated  in  a  diamond  chariot,  drawn  by  up- 
ward of  ten  thousand  butterflies,  all  of  a  delicate  rose 
color.  They  were  harnessed  to  the  chariot  by  traces  of 
fine  gold  thread,  interwoven  with  consummate  skill;  a 


OLD,  OLD  FAIR  7  TALES.  159 

hundred  young  lords  followed  their  master  in  calashes  of 
rock-crystal,  set  with  emeralds  and  rubies,  drawn  likewise 
by  butterflies;  but  the  latter  were  quite  white.  When 
the  king's  chariot  arrived  near  the  place  where  the  ladies 
weree  standing  his  majesty  alighted  in  their  presence,  his 
suit  attending  him  in  admirable  order.  He  was  richly 
dressed,  and  never  was  dandy  more  powdered  or  better 
curled  than  his  majesty.  He  must  have  passed  at  least 
three  hours  at  his  toilet;  and  his  dread  of  disarranging 
.his  curls  made  him  walk  very  gently.-  however,  this  did 
not  prevent  his  appearing  to  great  advantage;  and  every- 
body admired  him,  the  ladies  making  observations  to 
each  other  as  to  the  delicate  whiteness  of  his  complexion 
and  hands.  Nothing  could  exceed  the  symmetry  of  his 
shape,  with  which,  indeed,  he  himself  seemed  to  be  not 
a  little  enamored.  He  easily  recognized  the  Princess 
Amy  by  a  portrait  which  had  been  given  to  him  by  the 
fairy;  and  having  approached  that  young  lady,  he  made 
her  a  very  formal  bow,  and  presenting  his  arm,  said  to 
her:  "This  is  not  a  proper  place,  charming  Amy,  to  com- 
pliment you  on  your  beauty,  the  air  is  too  sultry;  is  it 
possible  to  converse  at  one's  ease  on  a  terrace,  exposed  to 
the  melting  rays  of  the  sun?  Therefore,  let  us  enter  the 
palace,  and  not  risk  our  being  turned  black  as  Ethio- 
pians." 

With  these  words,  and  almost  without  saluting  the 
queen  and  the  ladies  of  her  suite,  the  King  of  the  But- 
terflies turned  toward  the  castle.  Having  entered,  with 
the  Princesss  Amy  and  those  who  accompanied  her,  into 
a  large  saloon  which  had  been  prepared  for  his  reception, 
he  threw  himself  on  a  sofa,  observing  that  he  was  stifled 
with  heat;  and  then  he  lolled  at  full  length  in  a  position 
anything  but  graceful.  However,  he  was  polite  enough 
to  ask  the  princess'  pardon  for  his  apparent  disrespect, 
assuring  her  that  he  was  in  absolute  want  of  repose;  and 
that  he  must  be  a  little  cooler  before  he  could  resolve  to 
speak  to  her  on  the  important  subject  of  his  coming. 
Thereupon  he  drew  sundry  diamond  smelling  and  essence 
bottles  from  his  pocket,  and  poured  some  perfume  on  his 
hands;  then  pulling  out  two  or  three  jeweled  gold  boxes, 
he  took  snuff,  and  commenced  humming  a  little  air, 
which  having  concluded,  he  asked  Amy  whether  she  did 
not  think  his  equipage  was  very  splendid;  and  whether 


160  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

his  dress,  which  he  had  selected  from  among  two  hun- 
dred, was  to  her  taste;  finishing  by  relating  to  her  the 
history  of  the  numberless  ladies  who  were  dying  of  love 
for  him. 

It  is  easy  to  judge  whether  such  topics  were  gratifying 
to  the  fair  Amy — she  who  preferred  wit  and  good  sense 
to  every  charm  of  person,  and  who  was  quite  different 
from  the  generality  of  her  sex,  on  whom  a  magnificent 
suit  of  clothes,  a  dashing  figure,  and  a  few  other  equally 
worthless  attractions,  make  more  impression  than  an 
amiable  heart  and  an  enlightened  understanding.  Ac- 
cordingly, she  conceived  so  great  an  aversion  for  the  King 
of  the  Butterflies  that  she  was  obliged  to  quit  the  saloon, 
stating  that  she  was  unwell,  and  retire  to  her  apartment, 
there  to  conceal  her  sorrow  and  her  tears. 

Although  Sincere  was  unwell,  on  hearing  of  Amy's  ill- 
ness he  contrived  to  drag  himself  to  her  apartment  to 
inquire  after  her  health.  When  the  Princess  Amy  saw 
him  she  sighed  and  said:  "Ah!  prince,  why  has  not  the 
queen  destined  me  to  be  yours?  Are  you  unable  to 
snatch  me  from  him  to  whom  they  would  by  force  unite 
me?" 

Sincere,  enraptured,  seized  her  hand,  and  kissing  it 
tenderly,  said:  "What!  beautiful  Amy,  is  it  possible  that 
you  would  rather  live  with  me  than  with  a  prince  whose 
handsome  face,  person  and  manners  are  universally  ad- 
mired? Deformed  as  I  am,  can  I  be  so  fortunate  as  not 
to  be  hateful  to  your  sight?  In  mercy  answer  me;  your 
reply  will  decide  on  the  happiness  or  misery  of  my  life." 

"Yes,  sir,"  said  the  charming  Amy,  "know  that  I  love 
you.  This  confession — "  She  would  have  spoken  fur- 
ther; but  Sincere,  hopping  backward,  became  gradually 
smaller  and  smaller,  until  at  last  he  was  quite  invisible. 
A  heavy  cloud  of  smoke  then  appeared  where  he  had 
lately  stood,  which  slowly  clearing  away,  the  princess  dis- 
covered an  extremely  handsome  young  man,  whose  looks, 
at  once  majestic,  benignant  and  intelligent,  inspired  her 
with  a  certain  indescribable  emotion,  which  engaged  her 
heart  in  his  favor  the  moment  their  eyes  met.  The 
Princess  Amy  continued  for  some  time  to  regard  him 
with  equal  admiration  rand  surprise;  but  her  astonish- 
ment increased  tenfold 'when  the  stranger  addressed  to 
her,  in  the  most  respectful  manner,  the  following  words: 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  161 

"The  charming  avowal  you  have  just  m-ade,  madam, 
has  forever  ended  my  enchantment.  I  am  the  Prince 
Sincere  who,  under  my  former  wretched  form,  was  rash 
enough  to  tell  you  he  adored  you." 

Amy  recognized  him  by  the  tone  of  his  voice,  and  giv- 
ing vent  to  her  joy  at  finding  him  so  different  from  what 
he  had  hitherto  appeared,  she  entreated  Sincere  to  in- 
form her  how  such  a  strange  metamorphosis  had  been 
brought  about. 

"I  am  the  sovereign,"  answered  the  prince,  "of  the 
Island  of  Sincerity;  and  when  the  event  I  am  about  to 
relate  to  you  happened,  I  was  reigning  over  that  island 
very  peaceably,  beloved  by  all  my  subjects.  One  day  at 
the  chase,  as  I  was  very  eagerly  pursuing  a  lion  which 
had  escaped  me  several  times,  I  unconsciously  lost  my 
way.  I  found  myself  in  a  shady  walk;  when,  on  looking 
around  me,  I  observed  a  woman  shaped  exactly,  madam, 
as  you  have  always  hitherto  seen  me.  I  gazed  on  her  in 
astonishment;  and  I  could  not  forbear  laughing  to  see 
her  turn  round  on  her  single  leg  like  a  weathercock.  She 
perceived  my  mirth;  and,  in  an  angry  voice,  asked  what 
amused  me.  Politeness  forbade  my  telling  her;  but  she 
pressed  me  so  closely  that  I  at  last  confessed  that  her 
singular  figure  had  provoked  my  laughter.  My  candor 
displeased  her:  she  knit  her  brows;  and,  after  throwing 
two  or  three  somersaults  in  the  air,  said: 

"  'As  a  punishment  for  your  insolence,  I  ordain  that 
your  form  shall  become  similar  to  mine;  and  no  power 
shall  restore  your  proper  shape  until  you  meet  with  a 
young  princess,  in  whom  are  united  wit,  good  nature  and 
beauty,  for  whom  you  shall  feel  a  violent  love;  and  who, 
notwithstanding  your  deformity,  shall  be  inspired  with 
sufficient  passion  for  yourself  to  make  you,  unasked,  an 
avowal  of  her  tenderness.  You  will,  however,  resume 
your  natural  form  during  the  space  of  one  hour  every 
day;  but  it  shall  only  take  place' in  a  certain  cavern  situ- 
ated in  a  forest  in  the  dominions  of  the  silkworm-fancy- 
ing king.  I  ordain,  further,  that  you  shall  not  be  per- 
mitted to  apprise  any  person  whatever  of  your  misfor- 
tune, until  your  enchantment  shall  be  dispelled.' 

"I  listened  very  patiently  to  this  threatening  speech, 
believing  that  it  would  not  be  followed  by  any  effects; 
but  what  was  my  grief  when,  after  this  frightful  fairy 


162  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

(for  fairy  she  was)  had  breathed  on  me,  I  became  as  mis- 
shapen as  herself.  My  transformation  completed,  she 
hopped  away  laughing  with  all  her  might.  I  dared  nol 
return  to  my  palace  and  state  what  had  occurred,  per- 
suaded that  I  should  neither  be  recognized  nor  believed 
The  desire  I  felt  to  recover  my  original  form  promptec 
me  to  travel  through  many  kingdoms  and  visit  man^ 
courts,  in  hopes  of  finding  such  a  princess  as  the  fair] 
had  mentioned;  but  my  travels  were  attended  by  no  re" 
suit.  I  consequently  grew  tired  of  searching,  am' 
formed  the  resolution  of  leading  a  solitary  life  in  som< 
retired  nook,  far  removed  from  the  habitations  of  nr 
fellow-men.  I  made  choice  of  the  rock  where  you  visitec 
me;  and  I  had  resided  there  about  a  \earwhen  I  had  th 
happiness  of  seeing  you  for  the  first  time.  You  appeare< 
to  me  a  divinity;  I  felt  that  you  were  the  only  persoi 
who  could  inspire  me  with  love,  though  I  dared  not  hop 
to  inspire  you  with  that  passion  in  r^urn;- nor  could 
even  think  it  possible  tl 'at  you  could  endure  to  look  upo] 
me.  I  went  occasional)^  to  the  cavern  in  the  forest,  t> 
enjoy  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  myself,  ior  a  few  minutes 
in  my  natural  form,  as  you  now  see  meJ>  One  day,  I  wa 
surprised  at  being  visited  there  by  the  princess  your  sis 
ter;  for  a  talisman  opposed  the  entrance  of  all  mortal 
into  the  cavern.  I  feigned  to  be  asleep,  that  I  migh 
avoid  speaking  to  her,  and  because  I  felt  that  the  mo 
ment  of  my  restoration  to  my  horrible  shape  wasdrawin; 
near;  and  it  took  place  the  moment  your  sister  went  int 
the  next  apartment.  I  quitted  the  cavern  by  an  avenu 
unknown  to  all  save  myself;  Katherine,  however,  left  i 
also  in  the  same  manner;  for  it  was  impossible  for  her  t 
re-enter  the  apartment  in  which  she  had  seen  me. 

"She  completed  her  twentieth  year  while  she  was  i: 
the  cavern,  and  her  ring  had  virtue  against  talisman 
until  she  had  attained  that  age  only.  There,  deares 
Amy,  is  the  history  of  my  metamorphosis;  it  now  onl 
remains  for  me  to  declare  my  lasting  passion  for  you,  an 
to  entreat  you  to  allow  me  to  solicit  your  hand  of  th 
queen  your  mother  and  her  majesty's  permission  for  yo 
to  reign  over  my  dominions,  where  you  will  find  everj 
body  zealous  to  obtain  your  favor." 

As  Sincere  censt  d  to  ppeak,  Katherine  and  Severe,  wh 
had  overheard  the  whole  of  his  discourse  with  Amy,  er 


OLD,  OLD  FAIR7  TALES.  163 

tered  the  room;  both  of  them  were  in  transports  of  rage; 
the  fairy,  because  Amy  preferred  another  to  her  nephew; 
and  Katherine,  because  Sincere,  in  whom  she  recognized 
the  charming  young  man  she  had  seen  in  the  cavern,  was 
in  love  with  her  sister.  She  gave  vent  to  her  incensed 
feelings  against  the  two  lovers  in  a  torrent  of  abusive 
language;  but  Severe  terminated  the  dispute  by  seizing 
the  unfortunate  Amy  by  her  flowing  ringlets  and  drag- 
ging her  through  the  open  window,  while  the  king,  in 
despair,  was  unable  to  offer  the  slightest  opposition. 
The  miserable  Sincere  immediately  rushed  out  of  the 
palace,  in  spite  of  Katherine,  who  would  have  detained 
him;  and  without  knowing  whither  he  went,  he  hastened 
onward,  resolved  to  take  no  repose  until  he  should  have 
recovered  his  dear  princess. 

The  King  of  the  Butterflies,  on  being  informed  of 
what  had  transpi  ed,  laughed  heartily;  he  thought  it  a 
very  good  joke,  ;  3  returned  t(  his  kingdom.  Mean- 
while, his  good  ant  dragged  ^my  along  at  immense 
speed;  and,  after  Dealing  many  steep  rocks  and  travers- 
ing many  wide  «ieserts,  arrived  at  the  base  of  an  old 
tower;  the  door  opened  at  her  bidding,  and  she  entered, 
pulling  the  princess  after  her.  Severe  made  Amy  follow 
her  into  a  large  hall  full  of  snails;  and  told  her  in  a  shrill 
voice  that  if  she  would  not  consent  to  marry  the  King  of 
the  Butterflies,  she  must  in  the  space  of  eight  days  teach 
all  those  snails  to  dance  or  become  herself  a  snail.  Hav- 
ing made  this  threat,  Severe  flew  away;  and  the  princess 
gave  way  to  a  violent  burst  of  tears,  without  feeling  the 
slightest  inclination  to  obey  her.  Let  us  leave  her  to 
weep  over  her  seemingly  hopeless  task  for  the  present, 
and  return  to  King  Sincere. 

That  prince,  having  passed  through  several  kingdoms, 
came  at  last  to  a  thick  forest.  On  walking  a  short  dis- 
tance into  this  forest,  he  perceived  a  house  built  entirely 
of  leaves,  the  door  of  which  standing  open,  he  saw  an  old 
woman  seated  in  an  armchair  reading  aloud  to  three 
little  children.  He  passed  the  house  without  stopping, 
or  taking  any  notice  of  it,  and  was  proceeding  on  his  way, 
when  the  old  woman  called  after  him,  crying  in  a  cracked 
voice  and  shaking  her  head:  "Prince^you  are  searching  in 
vain;  you  will  never  meet  with  the  Princess  Amy  until 
you  shall  have  first  Sound  a  brilliant  frog;  an  extremely 


164 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


ugly  woman,  who  is  conscious  of  her  want  of  beauty,  and 
does  not  attempt  to  make  conquests;  and  a  witless  man, 
who  does  not  flatter  himself  that  he  is  clever." 

King  Sincere  rightly  judged  from  these  words  that  the 
speaker  was  a  fairy;  so  he  entreated  her  to  grant  him 
some  other  and  less  difficult  means  of  recovering  his 
charming  Amy;  but  she  only  answered  him  by  grimaces, 
and  burst  into  a  loud  fit  of  laughter. 

The  disconsolate  prince  was  consequently  obliged  to 
proceed  onward,  though  he  was  extremely  fatigued  and 
very  much  afflicted,  and  quite  unconscious  as  to  the  road 


he  was  taking.  Before  he  had  gone  a  hundred  yards  he 
met  another  old  woman,  who  asked  him  what  occasioned 
his  grief.  Sincere  informed  her  of  his  misfortunes,  not 
omitting  what  the  fairy  he  had  just  left  had  said  to  him, 
and  adding  that  he  could  not  flatter  himself  with  the 
hope  of  ever  seeing  his  beloved  Amy  again,  if  it  were  in- 
deed true  that  that  happiness  depended  on  his  finding  a 
brilliant  frog.  "This,"  said  he,  ''appears  to  me  to  be  ut- 
terly ridiculous  even  to  seek;  the  two  other  conditions 
would  cause  me  less  uneasiness." 

"Do  not  flatter  yourself,"  said  the  good  woman,  "they 
are  at  least  equally  difficult  to  accomplish.  However/by 
diligent  searching,  you  may  meet  with  all  three  of  the 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  165 

required  curiosities;  but  if  at  the  expiration  of  a  year 
from  this  time  you  shall  not  have  discovered  them,  take 
my  advice  and  trouble  yourself  no  further,  for  your  case 
will  be  hopeless.  Go,  1  may  not  tell  you  more;  but  do 
not  let  my  sister,  whom  you  have  just  quitted,  see  you 
again  in  this  vicinity;  she  is  wicked,  and  you  might  ex- 
perience some  treachery  at  her  hands.  She  has  only  in- 
formed you  of  the  conditions  on  which  you  are  permitted 
to  withdraw  your  princess  from  her  place  of  confinement, 
because  she  is  persuaded  that  you  can  never  fulfill  them." 
The  king,  who  had  some  reason  to  dread  enchantments, 
hastened  away  as  fast  as  he  could,  and  traveled  through 
every  kingdom  in  the  world,  on  a  horse  which  he  most 
fortunately  found  on  quitting  the  wood.  In  every  city, 
town,  village,  hamlet  and  castle  that  he  came  to,  he 
made  an  indefatigable  search  for  ugly  old  women  and 
stupid  men.  He  found  abundance  of  both,  but  remarked 
that  none  of  the  ladies  were  offended  with  their  truth- 
telling  mirrors  at  the  reflection  of  their  ugliness,  nay, 
that  they  all  conceived  it  to  be  quite  easy  to  render  them- 
selves still  attractive  by  a  slight  and  judicious  use  of  the 
most  renowned  cosmetics.  Some,  whom  he  saw,  painted 
an  inch  thick,  at  least;  others  wore  sundry  patches  very 
artfully  disposed;  and  all  decorated  themselves  witn  flowers 
and  ribbons  enough  to  stock  a  milliner's  magazin,  and 
flattered  themselves  that,  in  spite  of  time,  they  were  still 
very  amiable,  and  that  they  might  dispute  the  palm  of 
beauty  with  the  fairest  and  the  youngest.  This  common 
effect  of  self-love  on  the  sex  did  not  surprise  the  prince; 
he  knew  that  all  ladies  are  endowed  from  their  birth  with 
a  tolerably  good  opinion  of  themselves.  But  what  did 
indeed  astonish  him  was,  that  he  found  among  the  men 
the  same  self-love  equally  strong  and  with  such  an  addi- 
tion of  little  weaknesses  as  would  even  make  the  fair  sex 
itself  contemptible.  He  had  always  heard  that  man  was 
the  most  perfect  of  Nature's  works,  and  he,  being  a  man, 
had  given  faith  to  the  aphorism  without  examining  it  too 
closely;  but  his  opinion  on  this  subject  was  strangely  al- 
tered by  the  opportunities  which  his  travels  afforded  him 
'to  study  this  creature  of  perfection  more  attentively. 
He  now  observed  that  the  minds. of  most  men  were 
occupied  by  trifles;  that  many  spent  their  time  wholly 
at  the  toilet,  at  table,  at  play,  or,  what  is  worse,  in 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

Hardly  had  the  fairy  .pronounced  these  words,  when  1 
was  transformed  into  the  creature  you  see.  I  applied 
immediately  to  a  fairy  who  protected  me,  but  she  was  not 
permitted  to  disenchant  me;  she  described  to  me,  how- 
ever, the  person  who  alone  had  power  to  do  so,  and  told 
me  that  he  had  a  white  hair  in  his  left  eyebrow,  bestowed 
on  him  by  a  skillful  magician  at  the  moment  of  his  birth, 
and  which  enabled  him  to  dispel  all  enchantments.  This 
fairy  has  conducted  you  hither,  and  it  was  she  who,  under 
the  form  of  a  bird,  made  the  Princess  Amy  a  present  of 
the  superb  diamond;  and  lastly,  she  it  was  who  took  care 
to  place  this  brilliant  mark  on  my  forehead,  and  who  will 
enable  you  to  find  a  witless  man  who  is  aware  of  his  stu- 
pidity, and  a  woman  who  is  conscious  that  her  ugliness  is 
insupportable.  These  two  extraordinary  persons  she  has 
brought  hither,  fearful  that  the  self-love  which  reigns  in 
the  world  should  corrupt  them,  as  it  has  corrupted  every 
one  else,  and  thus  destroy  your  hopes.  You  will  find 
them  in  a  little  cabin  at  a  short  distance  from  this  spot; 
but,  prince,  before  you  visit  them,  pray  have  the  kind- 
ness to  restore  to  us  our  natural  shapes,  and  allow  us  to 
pull  from  your  eyebrow  the  famous  hair  to  whose  virtue 
we  shall  owe  our  restoration,  as  it  will  be  equally  neces- 
sary to  enable  you  to  effect  the  deliverance  of  your  prin- 
cess." 

Sincere  wanted  no  more  entreating,  but  suffered  the 
hair  to  be  pulled  from  his  eyebrow.  He  took  it  from  the 
frog,  and  touching  her  and  all  those  around  her  there- 
with, they  were  immediately  changed  into  princes  and 
princesses,  very  gpodrlooking  and  very  amiable.  The 
queen  and  her  subjects  were  sufficiently  eloquent  in  their 
thanks  to  King  Sincere  for  his  kindness.  At  the  moment 
the  transformation  took  place,  the  second  old  woman  that 
the  prince  had  seen  in  the  wood  appeared  and  told  Sin- 
cere that,  as  a  recompense  for  the  service  he  had  just 
done  her  friend,  she  would,  after  he  had  visited  the  fool- 
ish man  and  the  ugly  woman  (who  would  give  him  a  herb 
that  he  would  presently  have  occasion  for),  transport  him 
to  the  place  where  his  beautiful  Amy  was  confined.  Ac- 
cordingly, Severe  paid  a  hasty  visit  to  this  singular  pair, 
found  them  to  be  such  as  he  was  in  search  of,  and  re- 
ceived from  them  the  mysterious  herb.  The  kind  fairy 
then  took  an  apple  which  she  changed  into  a  very  pretty 


OLD,  OLD  .FAIRY  TALES.  169 

carriage;  it  traveled  without  horses,  at  the  rate  of  three 
hundred  miles  a  minute,  and  is  supposed  to  have  been 
the  first  swift  carriage  invented.  She  seated  herself 
therein,  and  placed  the  prince  by  her  side.  Sincere  was 
charmed  with  this  wonderful  vehicle,  but  never  will  car- 
riage be  made  to  travel  fast  enough  for  a  lover  impatient 
to  rejoin  his  mistress.  Nevertheless,  they  arrived  in  an 
incredibly  short  space  of  time  at  the  base  of  the  tower 
in  which  the  beautiful  Amy  was  confined,  weeping  over 
tasks  impossible  to  perform,  and  which  the  Fairy  Severe 
had  assigned  her,  to  afford  herself  a  pretext  for  torment- 
ing the  lovely  princess. 

We  left  Amy  in  her  prison  weeping  over  the  apparently 
hopeless  task  of  teaching  a  quantity  of  snails  to  dance; 
and  we  are  now  going  to  inform  those  who  feel  any  curi- 
osity to  learn  how  the  princess  performed  that  difficult 
exploit.  For  the  first  seven  days  she  wept  unceasingly, 
and  gave  herself  no  trouble  about  the  instruction  of  the 
scholars  that  had  been  placed  under  her  charge;  but  on 
the  eighth  day,  which  was  that  on  which  the  fairy  was 
.expected  to  return  for  the  purpose  of  changing  her  into 
a  snail,  should  she  not  have  succeeded,  her  grief  was 
redoubled,  to  think  of  the  time  she  had  thrown  away. 
However,  she  determined  immediately  to  give  the  awk- 
ward animals  some  lessons,  but  soon  saw  that  all  her 
instructions  were  useless.  Persuaded  that  her  fate  was 
inevitable,  she  thought  seriously  of  putting  an  end  to 
her  existence,  for  she  preferred  death  to  becoming  a 
snail,  or  marrying  the  King  of  the  Butterflies.  With 
these  thoughts  in  her  mind,  the  miserable  Amy  threw 
open  the  window  with  the  intention  of  precipitating  her- 
self from  it;  but,  fortunately  recalling  to  her  recollection 
at  that  moment  the  ring  she  had  received  from  a  bird, 
and  the  words  that  accompanied  the  gift,  she  drew  it 
from  her  pocket,  and  regarding  it  attentively:  "Beauti- 
ful brilliant,"  said  she,  "if  you  have  the  power  to  rescue 
me  from  the  danger  I  am  in,  I  entreat  you  to  put  a  period 
to  my  misfortunes."  Directly  the  Princess  Amy  had 
pronounced  these  words,  the  ring  opened,  and  there  is- 
sued from  it  a  string  of  little  dancing-masters  and  violin 
players;  the  latter  immediately  commenced  playing, 
while  the  dancing  masters  arranged  the  snails  in  sets, 
and  taught  them  in  an  instant  every  kind  of  dance:  then 


170  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

all  the  musicians  and  the  masters  disappeared.  This 
marvelous  occurrence  greatly  comforted  the  princess; 
she  wiped  away  her  tears,  kissed  her  ring  in  a  transport 
of  joyful  gratitude,  and  concealed  it  more  carefully  than 
she  had  previously  done,  fearful  that  Severe  should  learn 
its  value  and  take  it  from  her. 

Hardly  had  the  princess  placed  her  ring  securely  in  her 
bosom  when  the  wicked  fairy  arrived,  and  asked  her, 
with  a  malignant  smile,  if  her  scholars  were  proficient  in 
the  art  of  dancing. 

"You  shall  see,  madam,"  said  Amy,  in  a  mild  and 
timid  voice;  then  opening  the  door  of  the  hall  that  con- 
tained them,  the  princess  began  to  sing.  On  hearing  her 
voice,  all  the  little  animals  began  to  dance,  and  that  so 
prettily,  especially  the  waltz,  gallopade,  and  saraband, 
that  Severe  became  at  once  surprised  and  furious.  The 
poor  princess  having  succeeded  so  well  in  this,  the 
merciless  fairy  gave  her  other  and  still  more  difficult 
tasks;  but  Amy  performed  them  all  with  the  assistance 
of  her  ring,  ller  repeated  successes  so  enraged  the  fairy 
against  her  that  she  shut  Amy  in  a  large  iron  cage, 
placed  her  in  a  yard  full  of  wild  and  ravenous  beasts,  and 
stationed  two  terrible  dragons  to  guard  the  door,  who 
made  frightful  efforts  to  break  open  the  cage  and  devour 
the  princess. 

The  unfortunate  princess  had  been  thus  confined  about 
a  month,  when  she  saw  Sincere  enter  the  yard:  he  had 
easily  obtained  admission  by  touching  the  door  with  his 
herb.  Amy  shuddered  at  the  danger  to  which  her  lover 
was  exposed.  Directly  Sincere  saw  his  mistress  in  that 
cruel  situation,  he  put  his  hand  on  his  sword  with  the 
intention  of  slaying  the  two  dragons;  I  say  put  his  hand, 
because,  ere  he  had  time  to  draw  it,  the  good  fairy  who 
had  conducted  him  thither  desired  him  to  hold,  and  to 
touch  them  only  with  the  herb  which  he  held  in  his  left 
hand.  Sincere  did  so,  when  the  dragons  immediately 
fell  dead  at  his  feet;  and  touching  the  door  of  the  cage 
with  the  charmed  hair  of  his  eyebrow,  he  instantaneously 
felt  himself;  the  princess,  and  the  kind  fairy  ascend  into 
the  air  surrounded  by  a  fleecy  cloud,  which  speedily  con- 
veyed the  trio  to  the  Island  of  Sincerity. 

The  king  was  immediately  recognized  by  his  subjects, 
who  testified  such  joy  at  their  sovereign's  return  as 


OLD.  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  171 

showed  how  severely  they  must  have  felt  his  loss,  and 
how  dear  he  was  to  them.  For  his  part,  in  ecstasy  at 
finding  himself  again  with  his  beloved,  he  said  to  her  the 
most  passionate  things,  to  which  Amy  replied  with  a  ten- 
derness quite  equal  to  his  own.  Sincere  instantly  dis- 
patched ambassadors  to  the  court  of  the  silkworm- 
fancying  king,  to  demand  the  princess  in  marriage.  The 
ambassadors  were  not  long  in  executing  their  commis- 
sion. On  their  return  they  brought  intelligence  that  his 
silkworm-fancying  majesty  had  blown  his  brains  out 
with  a  pistol,  about  twelve  months  before,  in  consequence 
of  being  unable  to  wind  an  exceedingly  entangled  skein 
of  silk;  that  the  queen  had  died  six  months  afterward  of 
the  smallpox  and  that  Katherine  had  poisoned  herself 
on  the  day  of  Sincere's  departure  in  search  of  his  nits- 
tress.  The  Princess  Amy  was  very  much  afflicted  on 
hearing  this  sorrowful  news,  and  immediately  went  into 
mourning  for  her  parents  and  sister,  which  she  wore  for 
six  months.  At  the  expiration  of  that  time  she  married 
King  Sincere,  and  they  lived  together  for  a  long  series  of 
years,  without  experiencing  the  slightest  misfortune,  or 
ceasing  to  love  each  other  as  tenderly  as  on  the  day  of 
their  wedding. 

The  beneficent  fairy  then  set  out  from  their  court  to 
rejoin  Queen  Brilliant,  her  friend;  and  the  hair  of  the 
king's  eyebrow,  which  had  been  to  them  of  such  assist- 
.ance,  was  set  in  a  golden  ring,  which  Sincere  wore  ever 
"afterward  on  the  third  finger  of  his  left  hand,  to  preserve 
him  from  the  malice  of  fairies. 


PRINCESS  ROSETTA. 

THERE  was  once  upon  a  time  a  king  and  queen  who 
had  two  fine  boys.  As  they  grew  to  boyhood  they  be- 
came beautiful  as  the  day;  so  well  were  they  nurtured 
that  they  looked  older  than  they  were.  The  queen  never 
failed  to  invite  the  fairies  at  the  birth  of  her  children, 
and  she  always  begged  her  visitors  to  tell  her  what  would 
happen  to  them. 

After  awhile  she  had  a  beautiful  liltlegirl,  who  was  so 
pretty  that  it  was  impossible  to  see  her  without  loving 


17$  OLD,  OLD  FAIRT  TALES. 

her.  Again  she  invited  the  fairies,  and  they  came  in 
great  state;  the  chief  fairy  in  a  sledge  drawn  by  rein- 
deer, for  her  home  was  in  the  far  North.  The  queen, 
having  regaled  all  the  fairies  who  came  to  see  her  on  the 
occasion,  said  to  them  as  they  were  about  to  leave:  "Do 
not  forget  your  usual  custom,  but  tell  me  what  will  hap- 
pen to  Rosetta,"  which  was  the  little  princess'  name. 

The  fairies  told  her  that  they  had  left  their  conjuring 
book  at  home,  and  that  they  would  come  to  see  her  again 
another  time. 

"Ah!"  said  the  queen,  "that  forebodes  no  good;  you  do 
not  wish  to  afflict  me  by  an  unhappy  prediction;  I  pray 
you  however,  to  conceal  nothing  from  me,  but  tell  me 
all." 

They  tried  hard  to  excuse  themselves,  but  this  only 
made  the  queen  more  anxious  to  know  her  daughter's 
destiny.  At  last  the  chief  fairy  said  to  her:  "We  fear, 
madam,  that  Rosetta  will  bring  a  severe  misfortune  upon 
her  brothers;  that  they  will  even  be  put  to  death  on  her 
account.  This  is  all  we  can  foretell  of  this  beautiful 
little  girl,  and  we  are  very  sorry  that  we  have  not  better 
news  to  give  you."  They  then  left  her;  and  the  queen 
remained  so  sorrowful  that  the  king  noticed  it.  He 
asked  her  what  was  the  matter.  She  replied  that  she 
had  gone  too  near  the  fire,  and  had  burned  all  the  flax  off 
her  distaff.  "Is  that  all?"  said  the  king.  He  went  to 
his  stores,  and  brought  her  more  flax  than  she  could  have 
spun  in  a  hundred  years. 

The  queen  was  still  sad,  and  the  king  asked  her  again 
what  was  the  matter.  She  told  him  that  as  she  was  walk- 
ing by  the  river  he  had  let  one  of  her  green  satin  slip- 
pers fall  therein.  "Is  that  all?"  said  the  king.  He  im- 
mediately summoned  all  the  shoemakers  in  his  kingdom; 
and  gave  the  queen  ten  thousand  slippers  made  of  the 
same  material. 

Still  the  queen  was  not  consoled,  and  the  king  asked 
her  a  third  time  what  was  the  matter.  She  said  that  eat- 
ing too  fast  she  had  swallow  3d  her  wedding-ring.  The 
king  knew  that  she  was  not  telling  him  the  truth,  for-he 
had  the  ring  about  him,  so  he  said  to  her:  "My  dear,  you 
are  telling  a  falsehood;  here  is  your  ring,  which  I  had  in 
my  purse."  The  lady  as  may  be  supposed  was  vexed  to 
be  caught  telling  an  untruth  (for  it  is  the  most  wicked 


OLD,  OLD  fAIRT  TALES. 

thing  in  the  world),  and  she  saw  that  the  king  was  angry; 
so  she  told  him  what  the  fairies  had  predicted  of  the 
little  Rosetta;  adding,  that  if  he  knew  any  means  of  pre- 
venting it,  he  must  tell  her.  The  king,  much  grieved  at 
this,  replied:  "My  dear,  I  know  of  no  other  means  of  sav- 
ing our  two  sons'  lives  than  putting  Rosetta  to  death 
while  she  is  yet  in  her  cradle."  The  queen,  however, 
said  that  she  would  rather  suffer  death  herself  than  con- 
sent to  so  cruel  an  action,  and  begged  her  husband  to 
think  of  some  other  remedy. 

While  the  king  and  queen  were  still  thinking  on  this 
subject,  the  queen  was  told  that  there  was,  in  a  large 
wood  near  the  town,  an  old  hermit,  who  lived  in  a  lonely 
cell;  and  that  he  was  consulted  by  people  far  and  near. 
She  said:  "I  must  go  then  and  consult  him  also,  as  the 
fairies  have  told  me  the  evil,  but  they  have  forgotten  to 
tell  me  the  remed}."  So  the  next  morning  she  rose 
early,  mounted  a  pretty  little  white  mule,  whose  shoes 
were  of  gold,  and  left  the  palace  accompanied  by  two  of 
her  young  ladies,  who  each  rode  on  a  nice  horse  also. 
When  they  were  near  the  wood  the  queen  and  her  young 
ladies  alighted,  and  sought  the  cell  where  the  hermit 
lived. 

He  did  not  like  to  see  women;  but  when  he  perceived 
that  it  was  the  queen  he  said  to  her:  "You  are  wel- 
come; what  do  you  want  with  me?"  She  told  him 
what  the  fairies  had  said  of  Eosetta,  and  asked  his  ad- 
vice. He  directed  her  to  shut  the  princess  in  a  tower, 
and  never  allow  her  to  leave  it.  The  queen  thanked  him, 
rewarded  him  liberally,  and  went  back  to  tell  the  king. 

The  king  having  heard  this  caused  a  large  tower  to  be 
erected,  and  when  it  was  finished  confined  his  daughter 
therein;  but  that  she  might  not  be  lonely,  he,  the  queen 
and  the  two  young  princes  visited  her  every  day."  The 
eldest  was  called  the  Prince  Royal  and  the  youngest 
Prince  Orlando.  They  both  loved  their  sister  passion- 
ately, for  she  was  the  fairest  and  the  sweetest-tempered 
girl  that  was  ever  seen;  her  slightest  glance  was  worth 
more  than  a  hundred  crowns.  When  she  was  fifteen 
years  old  the  Prince  Royal  said  to  the  king:  "Surely, 
father,  my  sister  is  old  enough  to  wbe  married;  shall  we 
not  soon  celebrate  her  wedding?"  Prince  Orlando  put 
the  same  question  to  the  queen,  but  their  majesties 


174  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

amused  them  without  replying  directly  on  the  subject  of 
the  marriage. 

At  last  the  king  and  queen  were  taken  very  ill,  and 
died  nearly  the  same  day.  Everybody  was  very  sorrow- 
ful, and  went  into  mourning;  the  bells  were  also  tolled 
throughout  the  kingdom.  Rosetta  was  inconsolable  at 
the  death  of  her  kind  mother. 

When  the  king  and  queen  were  buried  the  noblemen 
of  the  kingdom  placed  the  Prince  Royal  on  a  golden 
throne  set  with  diamonds,  put  a  handsome  crown  on  his 
head,  dressed  him  in  violet-colored  velvet  clothes  spangled 
with  suns  and  moons,  and  then  all  the  court  cried  three 
times:  "Long  live  the  king!"  Nothing  was  thought  of 
but  rejoicing. 

The  king  and  the  prince  said  to  one  another:  "Now 
that  we  are  the  masters,  we  may  surely  liberate  our  sister 
from  the  tower  where  she  has  been  so  long  and  is  so  mel- 
oncholy."  To  reach  the  tower  they  had  only  to  cross 
the  garden,  in  a  corner  of  which  it  was  built,  very  high 
indeed,  for  the  deceased  king  and  queen  had  intended 
her  to  reside  there  all  her  life. 

Rosetta  was  embroidering  a  fine  gown  on  a  frame  which 
stood  before  her,  but  when  she  saw  her  brothers  she  rose, 
and,  taking  the  king's  hand,  said:  "Good-morrow,  sire; 
now  that  you  are  king,  and  I  am  your  little  servant,  I 
entreat  you  to  remove  me  from  this  tower,  where  I  am 
very,  very  solitary."  She  then  began  to  cry.  The  king 
embraced  her,  and  told  her  to  dry  her  tears,  for  he  had 
come  to  take  her  to  a  fine  castle.  The  prince,  who  had 
his  pockets  full  of  sweetmeats,  gave  them  to  Rosetta  and 
said  to  her: 

"Come,  let  us  quit  this  ugly  tower;  the  king  will  soon 
find  a  husband  for  you,  so  do  not  afflict  yourself." 

When  Rosetta  saw  the  nice  garden  full  of  flowers, 
l.  lits  and  fountains  she  was  so  surprised  that  she  could 
not  say  a  word;  for  she  had,  till  then,  never  seen  any- 
thing of  the  kind.  She  looked  all  round,  walked  a  little 
way,  stopped,  and  then  gathered  fruit  from  the  trees  and 
flowers  from  the  parterre.  Her  little  dog,  Fretillon,  who 
was  green  like  a  parrot,  had  only  one  ear,  and  who 
danced  to  admiration,  ran  before  her  barking  "bow, 
wow,  wow,"  with  a  thousand  leaps  and  capers. 

Fretillon  very  much  amused  the  company;  but  all  at 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


175 


once  he  ran  into  a  little  wood.  The  princess  followed 
him,  and  never  was  any  one  more  surprised  than  she  was 
at  seeing  in  this  wood  a  large  peacock,  which,  with  its  tail 


spread  out,  appeared  to  her  so  beautiful  that  she  could 
not  take  her  eyes  off  it.  The  king  find  the  prince,  who 
soon  came  up  with  her,  asked  her  at  what  she  was  so 
much  amazed.  She  showed  them  the  peacock  and  asked 


176  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

them  what  it  was.  They  told  her  that  it  was  a  bird  of  a 
kind  that  was  sometimes  eaten. 

"What!"  said  she,  "do  they  ever  kill  and  eat  so  beau- 
tiful a  bird?  I  declare  to  you  that  I  will  marry  no  one 
but  the  King  of  the  Peacocks;  I  shall  then  be  queen,  and 
I  will  take  care  that  no  peacocks  are  eaten." 

It  would  be  impossible  to  express  the  king's  astonish- 
ment. "But,  sister,"  said  he  to  her,  "where  shall  we 
find  the  King  of  the  Peacocks?" 

"Wherever  you  please,  sire,"  said  she;  "but  I  will 
marry  no  one  but  him." 

After  she  had  taken  this  resolution  the  two  princes 


led  her  to  their  castle,  where  they  were  obliged  to  take 
the  peacock  also,  and  put  it  in  her  room,  for  she  was 
very  fond  of  it. 

All  the  ladies  who  had  not  seen  Rosetta  hastened  to 
seek  an  introduction,  to  pay  their  court  to  her;  some 
brought  her  sweetmeats,  some  sugar  plums,  others  rich 
gowns,  fine  ribbons,  dolls,  embroidered  shoes,  pearls  and 
diamonds;  she  was  feasted  everywhere,  and  she  was  so 
well  behaved  and  civil,  kissing  her  hand  and  courtesying 
whenever  anything  was  given  her,  that  every  one  was 
pleased  with  her. 

While  she  was  discoursing  with  her  company  the  king 
and  the  prince  were  considering  how  they  should  find 
the  King  of  the  Peacocks  if  there  were  one  in  the  world. 
They  came  to  the  determination  of  having  a  portrait 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  177 

taken  of  the  Princess  Rosetta;  and  they  had  it  done  so 
beautifully  that  it  only  wanted  speech.  They  then  said 
to  the  princess:  "Since  you  will  only  marry  the  King  of 
the  Peacocks,  we  are  about  to  seek  him  for  you,  all  over 
the  earth.  We  shall  be  very  glad  to  find  him,  and  you 
must  take  care  of  our  kingdom  during  our  absence." 

Eosetta  thanked  them  for  the  pains  they  were  taking, 
told  them  that  she  would  govern  the  kingdom  well,  and 
that  while  they  were  gone  her  only  pleasures  would  be 
looking  at  the  beautiful  peacock  and  seeing  Fretillon 
dance.  They  could  not  help  crying  when  they  bade  one 
another  adieu. 

Behold  the  two  young  princes  on  their  journey,  asking 
every  one  they  met:  "Pray,  do  you  know  the  King  of 
the  Peacocks?" 

They  were  always  answered:  "No,  gentlemen,  no!" 
They  still  kept  going  forward,  till  at  last  they  got  so  far 
that  no  one  had  ever  been  so  far  before. 

They  presently  arrived  at  the  kingdom  of  the  May-flies 
(there  is  no  longer  such  a  place  to  be  seen):  the  May-flies 
made  such  a  loud  humming  that  the  king  was  afraid  he 
should  lose  his  hearing.  He  asked  the  one  who  appeared 
to  him  to  be  the  most  intelligent-looking  among  them 
whether  he  knew  where  the  King  of  the  Peacocks  was  to 
be  found. 

"Sire,"  said  the  May-fly,  "his  kingdom  is  ninety  thou- 
sand miles  from  here;  you  have  taken  the  longest  road 
to  reach  it." 

"How  do  you  know  that?"  said  the  king. 

"Because,"  said  the  May-fly,  "we  go  every  year  to  pass 
two  or  three  months  in  their  gardens." 

Then  the  king  and  his  brother  embraced  the  May-fly 
again  and  again;  they  became  very  friendly  and  dined 
together;  the  princes  examined  with  admiration  all  the 
curiosities  of  their  country,  where  the  smallest  leaf  was 
worth  a  dollar.  They  afterward  departed  to  finish  their 
journey,  and,  as  they  now  knew  the  road,  were  not  long 
before  they  completed  it.  They  observed  that  all  the 
trees  were  loaded  with  peacocks;  the  place  was  so  full  of 
them  that  their  voices  might  be  heard  six  miles  off. 

The  king  said  to  his  brother:  "If  the  King  of  the  Pea- 
cocks is  a  peacock  himself,  how  will  our  sister  be  able  to 
marry  him?  We  should  be  foolish.,  too,  to  consent  to  the 


178  OLD,  OLD  PAIR7  TALES. 

match.  What  a  splendid  alliance  would  she  form  for  UP 
little  peacocks  for  nephews  and  nieces!" 

The  prince  was  equally  grieved.  "It  is  an  unfortunate 
fancy  that  occupies  her  mind,"  said  he;  "I  cannot  think 
where  she  learned  that  there  was  a  King  of  the  Pea- 
cocks." 

When  they  arrived  at  the  chief  town  they  observed 
that  it  was  full  of  men  and  women,  whose  clothes  were 
made  of  peacocks'  feathers;  and  that  peacocks'  feathers 
were  displayed  everywhere  as  very  fine  things.  They  met 
the  king,  who  was  taking  an  airing  in  a  beautiful  little 
carriage  made  of  gold  and  set  with  diamonds,  drawn  by 
twelve  peacocks,  which  were  harnessed  to  it.  The  King 
of  the  Peacocks  was  so  very  handsome  that  our  king  and 
the  prince  were  charmed  with  him;  he  was  fair  complex- 
ioned,  had  long  light-colored  curling  hair,  and  a  crown 
of  large  peacocks'  feathers.  When  he  came  up  he  con- 
jectured that  the  two  princes,  as  they  were  dressed  dif- 
ferently from  the  people  of  the  country,  were  foreigners; 
and,  in  order  to  ascertain,  he  stopped  his  carriage  and 
called  to  them. 

The  king  and  the  prince  went  up  to  him,  and,  having 
made  an  obeisance,  said:  "Sire,  we  have  come  from  afar 
to  show  you  a  portrait."  They  then  took  from  the  r 
portmanteau  the  large  picture  of  Rosetta. 

When  the  King  of  the  Peacocks  had  loo1  >d  at  it:  "I 
cannot  imagine,"  said  he,  "that  there  is  ii  the  world  so 
beautiful  a  girl." 

"The  original- is  a  hundred  times  more  'tiful  than 
the  picture,"  said  the  king. 

"Ah!  you  are  joking,"  said  the  King  of  the  Peacocks. 

"Sire,"  said  the  prince,  "here  is  my  brother  wi.o  is  a 
king  like  you:  he  is  a  king  and  lam  a  p  '  ••  sister, 

whose  portrait  this  is,  is  the  Princess  i. .  I  we 

are  c^ine  to  ask  you  whether  you  are  williij^  w  mar". 7 
her;  she  is  beautiful  and  very  good,  and  we  will  give  with 
K?,r  a  bushel  measure  full  of  golden  crowns." 

"Yes,  indeed,"  said  the  king,  "I  will  marry  her  with 
all  my  heart;  she  will  want  nothing  with  me,  and  I  will 
be  very  fond  of  her;  but  I  assure  you  that  I  expect  her  to 
be  as  fair  as  her  portrait,  and  if  she  be  in  the  smallest 
degree  less  so  I  will  put  you  to  death." 

"Well,  we  consent,"  answered  Eosetta's  two  brothers. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  179 

"You  consent?"  said  the  king.  "Go  then  to  prison, 
and  remain  there  until  the  princess  arrives.'7 

The  princes  left  him  without  a  murmur,  for  they  were 
juite  certain  that  Rosetta  was  more  handsome  than  her 
oortrait. 

When  they  were  in  prison  the  king  had  them  well  at- 
Lended  to;  he  went  often  to  see  them,  and  kept  in  his 
•oom  Rosetta's  portrait,  with  which  he  was  so  infatuated 
hat  he  slept  neither  day  nor  night.  As  the  king  and  his 
orother  were  in  prison,  they  wrote  to  the  princess,  desir- 
ing her  to  make  herself  ready  and  come  with  all  speed  to 
them,  for  at  last  the  King  of  the  Peacocks  was  found, 
and  was  awaiting  her  arrival.  They  did  not  inform  her 
that  they  were  prisoners  for  fear  of  making  her  uneasy. 

When  the  princess  received  the  letter  she  was  so  trans- 
ported with  joy  as  to  be  quite  overcome;  she  told  every- 
body that  the  King  of  the  Peacocks  was  found  and 
Dished  to  marry  her.  Bonfires  were  lighted,  cannons 
,vere  discharged,  and  sugar-plums  and  sweetmeats  were 
iniversally  eaten;  and  all  who  came  to  see  the  princess 
luring  three  days  were  presented  with  a  service  of  cake 
,nd  wine.  After  this  liberality,  she  left  her  fine  dolls 
,o  her  best  friends,  and  placed  the  government  of  her 
brother's  kingdom  in  the  hands  of  the  wisest  old  men  of 
*he  capital.  She  recommended  them  to  take  care  of  all, 
o  spend  notL  \g,  and  to  collect  money  against  the  king's 
3turn;  she  -e>:ged  them  to  keep  her  peacock,  and  took 
'ith  her  o  er  nurse  and  her  foster-sister  with  her 

ttle  green        •,  Fretillon. 

They  all  embarked  in  a  boat  on  the  sea,  taking  with 
_hem  the  bushel  of  golden  crowns  and  a  sufficient  quan- 
tity of  clothe^  last  them  ten  years,  changing  them 
twice  a  ^  Jid  nothing  but  laugh  and  sing*  x  The 

nurse  a  ..uked  the  boatman:  "Are  we  nearingV'are 

we  4  3aring  the  kingdom  of  the  peacocks?" 

"Not  yet,"  said  he. 

Once  more  she  asked  him:  "Are  we  nearing,  are  we 
nearing?" 

He  said:  "Presently,  presently." 

Yet  again  she  asked  him:  "Are  we  nearing,  are  we 
Hearing  r* 

This  time  he  answered:  "Yes." 

And  when  ho  had  said  so,  the  nurse  came  forward  ancl 


180  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

seated  herself  by  him,  and  said  to  him:  "If  you  wish  it, 
you  shall  be  rich  forever." 

He  answered:  "I  desire  nothing  better." 

She  then  continued:  "If  you  wish  it,  then,  you  shall 
gain  lots  of  dollars." 

He  answered:  "I  desire  nothing  better." 

"Very  well,"  said  she,  "to-night,  while  the  princess  is 
asleep,  you  must  assist  me  to  throw  her  overboard. 
When  she  is  drowned  I  will  dress  my  daughter  in  her 
fine  clothes,  and  we  will  take  hsr  to  the  King  of  the  Pea- 
cocks, who  will  be  very  glad  to  marry  her;  and  for  a  re- 
ward your  neck  shall  be  loaded  with  diamonds." 

The  boatman  was  very  much  surprised  at  what  the 
nurse  proposed  to  him.  He  told  her  that  it  would  be  a 
pity  to  drown  so  beautiful  a  princess,  and  that  he  was 
very  sorry  for  her.  However,  she  took  a  bottle  of  wine, 
and  made  him  drink  so  much  that  he  did  not  know  how 
to  refuse  her. 

Night  being  come,  the  princess  went  to  bed  as  usual; 
her  little  Fretillon  lay  prettily  at  her  feet,  without  mov- 
ing a  paw.  Rosetta  was  sleeping  very  soundly,  when 
the  wicked  nurse,  who  was  watchful  enough,  left  her  to 
fetch  the  boatman.  She  brought  him  where  the  princess 
was  sleeping;  and  then,  without  awakening  her,  they 
took  her  with  her  feather  bed,  mattress,  sheets  and  coun- 
terpane, while  the  foster-sister  also  helped  them  all  she 
could.  They  then  threw  her,  bed  and  all,  into  the  sea, 
and  the  princess  was  sleeping  so  soundly  that  she  did  not 
awaken. 

But  most  fortunately  her  couch  was  made  of  phoenix 
feathers,  which  are  very  scarce  and  have  this  property, 
that  they  cannot  sink,  which  caused  her  to  float  in  her 
bed  as  though  she  had  been  in  a  boat.  The  water,  how- 
ever, gradually  wetted  her  feather  bed,  then  the  mat- 
tress; and  Rosetta,  feeling  the  water,  could  not  tell  what 
it  meant. 

As  she  turned  she  awakened  Fretillon.  He  had  an  ex- 
cellent nose  and  smelled  the  cod  and  soles  so  near  that  he 
began  barking  at  them,  which  awakened  all  the  osher 
fish.  They  began  swimming  about;  and  the  large  fishes 
ran  their  heads  against  the  princess'  bed,  which,  being 
held  by  nothing,  turned  round  and  round  like  a  whip- 
top.  Oh!  was  she  not  surprised!  "Is  our  boat  dancing 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  181 

on  the  water?"  said  she.  "I  am  not  generally  so  ill  at 
ease  as  I  have  been  to-night."  As  Fretillon  still  kept 
barking,  for  he  was  in  despair,  the  wicked  nurse  and  the 
boatman  heard  it  from  a  distance,  and  said:  "That  is  the 
princess'  comical  little  dog  drinking  with  his  mistress  to 
our  good  health;  let  us  make  haste  to  arrive;"  for  they 
were  now  close  to  the  kingdom  of  the  peacocks. 

The  king  had  sent  to  the  seashore  a  hundred  car- 
riages, drawn  by  all  manner  of  scarce  animals;  there 
were  lions,  bears,  stags,  wolves,  horses,  oxen,  asses,  eagles 
and  peacocks;  and  the  carriage  intended  for  the  Princess 
Eosetta  was  drawn  by  six  blue  apes,  who  could  leap  and 
dance  on  the  tight -rope  and  play  a  thousand  pretty 
tricks;  their  harness  was  very  superb,  and  was  made  of 
crimson  velvet,  with  plates  of  gold.  There  were  also 
sixty  young  ladies,  whom  the  king  had  chosen  to  wait  on 
her;  their  clothes  were  of  various  colors,  and  gold  and 
silver  were  the  least  valuable  of  their  ornaments. 

The  nurse  had  been  at  great  trouble  to  decorate  her 
daughter;  she  had  dressed  her  in  Rosetta's  finest  gown, 
with  a  diamond  headdress  and  lots  of  jewels.  But  in 
spite  of  her  pains,  her  daughter  was  as  ugly  as  a  monkey: 
her  hair  was  back  and  greasy;  she  squinted  shockingly; 
her  limbs  were  crooked;  she  had  a  large  hump  between 
her  shoulders,  was  bad-tempered,  slovenly,  and  always 
grumbling. 

When  the  King  of  the  Peacocks'  people  saw  her  com- 
ing out  of  the  boat,  they  were  so  surprised  that  they 
could  not  speak.  "Heyday,  what  is  the  matter?"  said 
she.  "Are  you  all  asleep?  Make  haste  and  bring  me 
something  to  eat,  You  are  low  wretches,  and  I  will  have 
you  all  hanged." 

On  hearing  this,  they  said  among  themselves:  "What 
an  ugly  creature!  and  she  appears  to  be  as  wicked  as  she 
is  ugly.  Truly  our  king  will  be  well  married;  but  I  am 
not  surprised  when  one  seeks  a  wife  from  the  end  of  the 
world." 

She  gave  as  much  trouble  as  she  could,  and  for  no 
offense  she  struck  and  boxed  the  ears  of  everybody  about 
her. 

As  her  equipage  was  very  large,  she  went  along  very 
slowly,  and  carried  her  head  as  high  as  a  queen,  in  her 
coach.  But  all  the  peacocks,  who  were  perched  on  the 


182  OLD,  OLD  FAIR7  TALES. 

trees  to  salute  her  as  she  passed  along,  and  who  had  re- 
solved to  cry:  "Long  live  beautiful  Queen  Rosetta,'* 
when  they  saw  her  so  ugly,  cried:  "Fy,  fy,  how  ugly 
she  is!" 

She  flew  into  a  violent  passion  upon  this,  and  said  to 
her  guards:  "Kill  these  rascals  of  peacocks  who  are 
abusing  me." 

The  peacocks,  however,  quickly  flew  away,  and  laughed 
at  her. 

The  roguish  boatman,  who  saw  all  that  passed,  said  to 
the  nurse:  "Gossip,  we  are  not  quite  right;  your  daugh- 
ter ought  to  be  prettier." 

She  answered:  "Silence,  blockhead;  you  will  bring 
some  ill-luck  on  us,  with  your  prattle/"' 

They  told  the  king  that  the  princess  was  drawing  near. 
"Very  well,"  said  he,  "did  her  brothers  tell  the  truth? 
is  she  more  beautiful  than  her  portrait?" 

"Sire,"  said  a  courtier,  "it  is  enough  if  she  is  as 
good-looking." 

"Yes,  indeed,"  said  the  king,  "I  shall  be  satisfied;  let 
us  go  and  see  her;"  for  he  guessed  by  the  noise  in  the 
courtyard  that  she  was  now  very  near,  though  he  could 
not  make  out  exactly  what  was  said,  excepting  that  he 
thought  he  heard:  "Fy,  fy,  how  ugly  she  is!"  He 
thought,  however,  that  these  cries  were  applied  to  some 
dwarf  or  beast  that  she  had  brought  with  her;  for  it 
never  entered  his  mind  that  they  were  speaking  of  the 
princess  herself. 

The  portrait  of  Rosetta  was  carried  at  the  end  of  a 
long  pole,  without  any  covering;  and  the  king  walked 
slowly  after  it,  with  all  his  barons,  his  peacocks,  and  the 
ambassadors  from  the  neighboring  kingdoms.  The  King 
of  the  Peacocks  was  very  impatient  to  see  his  dear  Ro- 
setta; but  in  truth,  when  he  did  see  her,  the  sight  nearly 
killed  him  on  the  spot;  he  tore  his  clothes,  put  himself 
into  the  most  violent  passion,  and  would  not  go  near  her: 
she  quite  frightened  him. 

"What,"  said  he,  "have  these  two  scoundrels  that  I 
have  in  prison  had  the  boldness  to  make  sport  of  me.  and 
to  propose  to  marry  me  to  such  a  baboon  as  that!  They 
shall  die.  Come!  away  with  this  silly  woman,  her  nurse 
and  all  who  brought  them;  let  them  be  confined  in  the 
round  towej;." 


OLD.  OLD  PAIR?  TALES.  183 

Meanwhile,  the  king  and  his  brother,  who  were  pris- 
oners, and  knew  that  it  was  about  the  time  for  their  sis- 
ter to  arrive,  had  put  on  their  finest  clothes  to  receive 
her.  Instead,  however,  of  seeing  their  prison  door 
opened  and  themselves  set  at  liberty,  as  they  expected, 
the  jailer  came  with  soldiers,  and  made  them  descend 
into  a  dark  dungeon,  full  of  noxious  reptiles,  where  they 
were  up  to  their  necks  in  water  No  one  could  be  more 
surprised  or  sorrowful  than  they  were.  "Alas!*'  said 
they  to  each  other,  "this  is  a  sorrowful  wedding  for  us! 
what  can  have  been  the  cause  of  such  a  sad  misfortune?" 
They  did  not  know  what  to  think,  excepting  that  they 
were  doomed  to  death. 

They  passed  three  days  in  this  miserable  plight.  At 
the  end  of  that  time  ,  the  King  of  the  Peacocks  came  to 
an  opening  that  was  in  the  wall,  to  reproach  them.  You 
have  called  yourselves  king  and  prince/'  said  he,  "to  en- 
trap me  into  a  marriage  with  your  sister;  but  you  are 
wretches  who  are  not  worth  the  water  you  drink.  I  am 
about  to  give  you  judges  who  will  soon  decide  your  fate; 
and  the  rope  is  twisting  with  which  I  will  have  you 
hanged." 

"King  of  the  Peacocks,"  said  our  king,  filled  with  in- 
dignation, "do  not  proceed  so  rashly  in  this  affair,  for 
you  may  yet  repent  it.  I  am,  like  you,  a  king,  and  have 
a  fine  kingdom,  robes  and  crowns,  and  plenty  of  money; 
you  seem  to  think  very  lightly  of  hanging  us;  have  we 
stolen  anything?" 

When  the  king  heard  him  speak  so  resolutely  he  knew 
not  what  to  make  of  it,  and  had  some  tnoughts  of  spar- 
ing their  lives,  and  of  letting  them  go  with  their  sister; 
but  his  trusty  friend,  who  was  a  real  parasite,  encouraged 
him;  saying  that  if  he  did  not  revenge  himself  all  the 
world  would  laugh  at  him,  and  think  him  a  weak  prince 
indeed.  So  he  swore  that  he  would  not  forgive  them, 
and  ordered  their  trial  to  proceed.  It  did  not  last  long, 
as  to  condemn  them  it  was  merely  necessary  to  compare 
the  portrait  of  the  real  Princess  Kosetta  with  the  person 
assuming  the  name.  They  were,  therefore,  sentenced  to 
be  beheaded,  for  having  told  the  king  a  lie,  in  promising 
to  him  in  marriage  a  beautiful  princess,  and  only  giving 
him  an  ugly  country  girl. 

This  decree  was  read  very  formally  to  them  in  prison, 


!84  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

when  they  protested  that  they  had  not  told  a  lie,  for  that 
their  sister  was  a  princess  more  beautiful  than  the  day; 
but  that  there  was  something  passing  which  they  could 
not  comprehend.  They  demanded  a  respite  of  seven 
days,  stating  that  in  that  time  something  might  occur  by 
which  their  innocence  would  be  established.  The  King 
of  the  Peacocks,  who  was  very  angry,  would  hardly  grant 
them  this  favor;  but  at  last  he  did  so. 

While  all  this  was  passing  at  the  court,  we  must  relate 
what  happened  to  the  poor  Princess  Rosetta.  We  have 
stated  that  when  it  was  daylight  she  was  very  much  sur- 
prised, as  was  Fretillon  also,  to  find  herself  out  at  sea 
without  a  boat  or  any  assistance.  She  cried  so  pitifully 
that  all  the  fishes  were  sorry  for  her:  she  knew  not  what 
to  do  or  what  would  become  of  her.  "Certainly,"  said 
she,  "the  King  of  the  Peacocks  has  ordered  me  to  be 
thrown  into  the  sea;  he  has  repented  his  design  of  marry- 
ing me,  and  to  get  rid  of  me  decently,  he  would  have  me 
drowned.  What  a  silly  man!"  continued  she;  "I  should 
have  loved  him  so  well!  we  should  have  managed  so 
nicely!"  Then  she  cried  still  more,  for  she  could  not 
help  loving  him. 

She  remained  two  days  floating  in  this  manner  from 
one  part  of  the  sea  to  another,  denched  to  her  skin,  ready 
to  die  with  cold,  and  nearly  frozen;  indeed,  had  it  not 
been  for  little  Fretillon,  who  kept  up  a  little  warmth 
near  her  heart,  she  would  have  died  a  hundred  times. 
She  was  dreadfully  hungry.  She  saw  oysters  in  their 
shells,  and  took  as  many  as  she  liked  and  ate  them. 
Fretillon  was  not  fond* of  oysters;  however,  he  was 
obliged  to  eat  some  in  order  to  keep  himself  alive.  When 
night  came  on  Rosetta  was  very  much  alarmed,  and  she 
said  to  her  dog.1  "Fretillon,  pray  keep  barking,  for  fear 
the  soles  should  eat  us  up." 

He  barked  all  night  long,  and  toward  the  morning  the 
princess'  bed  was  not  very  far  from  the  shore.  There 
happened  to  be  thereabout  a  good  old  man,  who  lived 
by  himself  in  a  little  cottage,  into  which  no  one  but  him- 
self ever  entered;  he  was  very  poor,  but  very  careless  of 
the  things  of  this  world.  When  he  heard  Fretillon  bark 
he  was  quite  surprised,  for  there  were  no  dogs  about 
there;  it  struck  him  therefore  that  some  travelers  had 
lost  their  way,  and  he  went  out  kindly  to  direct  them 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALE&  185 

aright.  Suddenly  he  perceived  the  princess  and  Fretil- 
lon,  who  were  floating  on  the  sea;  the  princess,  seeing 
him,  stretched  her  arms  toward  him  and  cried:  "Good 
old  man,  save  me,  or  I  shall  perish  here,  where  I  have 
been  two  days  languishing." 

When  he  heard  her  speak  so  sadly  his  heart  filled  with 
pity  for  her  misfortunes.  He  immediately  fetched  from 
his  house  a  long  boathook,  with  which  he  walked  into  the 
water  till  it  was  up  to  his  neck,  and  was  once  or  twice 
nearly  drowned.  At  last  he  succeeded  in  dragging  the 
bed  to  the  land. 

Eosetta  and  Fretillon  were,  as  ma^  be  supposed,  very 
glad  to  be  once  more  on  dry  ground.  The  princess  was 
very  thankful  to  the  good  old  man,  and  graciously  ac- 
cepted a  blanket,  which  she  wrapped  around  her;  then, 
barefooted,  she  entered  his  cottage,  where  he  lighted  a 
little  fire  of  dry  straw,  and  took  ouv  of  his  chest  a  wom- 
an's gown,  with  shoes  and  stockings,  in  which  Rosetta 
dressed  herself;  and  clad  even  thus  as  a  poor  peasant 
girl,  she  was  as  beautiful  as  the  day.  Fretillon,  enrap- 
tured, danced  round  her  for  her  amusement. 

The  old  man  saw  very  plainly  that  Rosetta  was  some 
grand  lady,  for  her  bedclothes  were  embroidered  with 
gold  and  silver,  and  her  mattress  was  covered  with  satin. 
He  begged  her  to  tell  him  her  story,  promising  that  he 
would  not  reveal  a  word  of  it  without  her  permission. 
She  told  him  all  from  beginning  to  end,  crying  bitterly 
the  while;  for  she  still  thought  that  the  King  of  the 
Peacocks  had  ordered  her  to  bo  drowned.  "How  shall 
we  act,  my  child?"  said  the  old  man  to  her.  "You  are 
a  noble  princess,  used  to  good  living,  while  I  have  only 
back  bread  and  radishes;  you  will  fare  but  poorly  with 
me,  and,  if  you  will  take  my  advice,  will  permit  me  to 
go  and  tell  the  King  of  the  Peacocks  that  you  are  here; 
for  were  he  to  see  you,  he  would  certainly  be  but  too 
happy  to  marry  you." 

"Ah!  he  is  a  wicked  man,"  said  Rosetta,  "and  would 
put  me  to  death.  But  if  you  have  a  little  basket,  do  but 
tie  it  round  my  dog's  neck,  and  it  will  be  very  unfor- 
tunate if  he  do  not  bring  us  back  something  to  eat." 

The  old  man  gave  the  princess  a  basket;  she  tied  it  to 
Fretillon's  neck,  and  said  to  him:  "Go  to  the  best  sauce- 
pan in  the  city,  and  bring  back  whatever  is  therein." 


Ig6  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

Fretillon  ran  to  the  city;  and,  as  the  king's  kitchen  was 
the  best,  he  went  into  it,  sought  out  the  best  saucepan, 
cleverly  took  out  the  contents,  and  returned  to  his  mis- 
tress. Rosetta  then  said  to  him:  "Beturn  to  the  pantry 
and  fetch  me  the  best  thing  thence."  Fretillon  went  to 
the  king's  pantry,  and  soon  returned  with  some  white 
bread,  muscadine  wine,  fruits  and  sweetmeats.  He  was 
so  laden  that  he  could  not  carry  more. 

When  it  was  the  King  of  the  Peacocks'  dinner-time 
there  was  nothing  in  his  saucepan  or  in  his  pantry;  the 
servants  looked  at  one  another  and  the  king  went  into  a 
violent  passion.  "What!"  said  he,  "so  I  am  to  have  no 
dinner!  Let  the  spit  be  put  to  the  fire,  and  let  me  have 
some  nice  roast  meat  this  evening." 

The  evening  being  come,  the  princess  said  to  Fretil- 
lon: "Go  to  the  best  kitchen  in  the  city  and  fetch  me  a 
nice  piece  of  roast  meat."  Fretillon  did  as  he  was  told, 
and,  thinking  that  the  king's  was  the  best  kitchen,  he 
very  softly  entered  it  while  the  cooks'  backs  were  turned, 
and  managed  slyly  to  take  away  all  that  was  on  the  spit; 
it  looked  so  delicious  that  the  very  sight  of  it  would  have 
given  an  appetite  to  a  sick  man.  He  returned  with  his 
basket  full  to  the  princess,  who  then  sent  him  back  again 
to  the  pantry,  whence  he  brought  all  the  king's  stewed 
fruit  and  sugarplums. 

The  king  having  had  BO  dinner,  was  very  hungry  in 
the  evening  and  wanted  his  supper  early;  but  as  there  as 
nothing  for  him,  he  put  himself  into  a  terrible  rage  and 
went  to  bed  supperless.  The  next  day  at  dinner  and 
supper  time  it  was  just  the  same;  so  that  the  king  was 
three  whole  days  without  eating  or  drinking  anything, 
because  whenever  he  sat  down  to  eat,  his  food  had  all 
been  taken  away.  His  confidant,  who  was  afraid  that  the 
king  would  die,  hid  himself  in  a  corner  of  the  kitchen, 
keeping  his  eyes  fixed  on  the  saucepan,  which  was  on  the 
fire  boiling.  He  was  soon  extremely  surprised  to  see 
enter  the  kitchen  a  little  green  dog,  having  only  one  ear, 
who  went  to  the  pot,  took  the  meat  out  of  it  and  put  it 
into  his  basket.  Desirous  to  know  where  he  went  to,  he 
followed  him  out  of  the  town  right  up  to  the  old  man's 
door.  He  then  returned  and  revealed  all  to  the  king, 
telling  him  that  it  was  to  a  poor  peasant  that  his  dinner 
and  supper  had  gone  every  day. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIR7  TALES. 

The  king  was  very  much  astonished,  and  ordered  the 
dog  to  be  sent  for.  The  confidant,  in  order  to  make  his 
court  to  the  king,  was  very  willing  to  show  the  archers 
the  way.  They  went  accordingly,  and  found  the  old  man 
and  the  princess  dining  on  the  king's  boiled  meat.  They 
were  taken  and  bound  with  large  ropes,  and  Fretillon  the 
same. 

When  they  had  arrived,  and  the  king  was  informed  of 
it,  he  said:  "To-morrow  is  the  last  day  I  granted  to  those 
insulting  pretenders,  and  they  shall  die  with  the  thieves 
who  have  stolen  my  dinner."  He  then  went  into  his 
justice-hall.  The  old  man  threw  himself  upon  his  knees 
and  said  that  he  would  tell  him  the  whole  truth.  While 
he  was  speaking,  the  king  looked  at  the  beautiful  prin- 
cess, and  was  moved  at  seeing  her  tears.  But  when  the 
good  old  man  declared  that  she  was  the  Princess  Ro- 
setta,  and  had  been  thrown  into  the  sea  by  her  wicked  at- 
tendants, in  spite  of  his  weakness  from  having  been  so 
long  without  food,  the  king  rushed  to  embrace  her,  and, 
untying  the  ropes  with  which  she  was  bound,  told  her 
that  he  loved  her  with  all  his  heart. 

The  princes,  who  were  immediately  sent  for,  thought 
that  they  were  about  to  be  put  to  death,  and  came  very 
sorrowfully,  hanging  down  their  heads;  at  the  same  time 
the  nurse  and  her  daughter  were  sent  for.  When  they 
met,  they  all  recognized  each  other;  Rosetta  threw  her- 
self into  her  brothers'  arms:  the  nurse,  her  daughter  and 
the  boatman,  knelt  and  asked  for  pardon.  The  joy  was 
so  great  that  they  were  forgiven  by  the  king  and  the 
princess,  and  the  good  old  man  was  handsomely  rewarded, 
always  afterward  residing  in  the  palace. 

Finally,  the  King  of  the  Peacocks  made  every  satisfac- 
tion to  our  king  and  his  brother,  testifying  his  grief  that 
they  had  been  so  long  ill-treated.  The  nurse  restored  to 
Rosetta  her  fine  clothes,  and  the  bushel  of  golden  crowns, 
and  the  wedding  feast  lasted  a  fortnight.  Everybody  re- 
joiced, even  little  Fretillon,  who  ate  nothing  on  the  occa- 
sjion  but  partridge  wings. 


188  OLD,  OLD  FAISf  TALES. 


BABIOLA. 

THERE  was  formerly  a  queen  who  would  have  been  en- 
tirely happy  but  lor  an  ungratified  desire  for  children. 
She  spoke  of  nothing  else,  and  was  continually  saying 
that  the  fairy  Fanferluche  having  attended  at  her  birth, 
and  not  having  been  satisfied  with  the  queen  her  mother, 
had  gone  irto  a  violent  passion  with  her,  and  had  en- 
dowed herself,  the  daughter,  with  nothing  but  misfor- 
tunes. 

One  day  as  she  was  sitting  alone  by  her  fireside,  very 
much  afflicted,  she  saw  a  little  old  woman,  a  span  high, 
come  down  the  chimney.  She  was  riding  on  a  loose 
bundle  of  rushes,  and  wearing  in  her  cap  a  sprig  of  haw- 
thorn; her  dress  was  made  of  the  wings  of  flies,  and  two 
walnut  shells  served  her  for  boots;  she  sailed  in  the  air, 
and  after  going  thrice  round  the  chamber  stopped  before 
the  queen.  "You  have,"  said  she  to  her,  "for  a  long 
time  murmured  against  me,  and  have  accused  me  as  the 
author  of  your  misfortunes,  laying  to  my  charge  all  that 
has  happened  to  you;  you  think,  madam,  that  I  am  the 
cause  of  your  having  no  children:  now  I  am  come  on 
'purpose  to  announce  to  you  that  you  will  soon  have  a 
daughter,  but  I  fear  that  she  will  cost  you  many  tears." 

"Ah!  noble  Fanferluche,"  cried  the  queen,  "do  not 
refuse  me  your  pity  and  assistance;  I  promise  you  all  the 
services  that  lie  in  my  power,  provided  that  the  princess 
you  announce  to  me  be  my  comfort,  and  not  my  afflic- 
tion." 

"Destiny  is  more  powerful  than  I  am,"  answered  the 
fairy;  "all  that  I  can  do  to  show  my  affection  for  you  is 
to  give  you  this  sprig  of  while  hawthorn;  secure  it  to 
your  daughter's  head  the  instant  she  is  bt>rn,  and  it  will 
guard  her  from  many  dangers."  She  gave  her  the  sprig 
of  white  hawthorn,  and  vanished  like  a  flash  of  lightning. 

The  queen  remained  sad  and  thoughtful.  "What  have 
I  desired,"  said  she — "a  daughter  who  will  cost  me  many 
tears  and  sighs?  should  I  not  be  more  happy  to  have 
none  at  all?"  The  presence  of  the  king,  whom  she  dearly 
loved,  partly  dissipated  her  grief,  but  she  presently  took 
great  care  to  enjoin  her  most  confidential  friends  to  tie 
on  the  young  princess'  head,  as  soon  as  she  should  be 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  18Q 

born,  the  sprig  of  hawthorn  blossom.,  which  she  kept  in  a 
golden  box  covered  with  diamonds,  as  the  thing  that  she 
valued  more  than  everything  else  in  the  world. 

At  last  the  queen  gave  birth  to  the  most  beautiful 
creature  that  was  ever  seen:  they  used  the  utmost  dili- 
gence in  tying  the  hawthorn  flower  on  her  head;  but  no 
sooner  was  it  done  than,  wonderful  to  relate,  in  an  instant 
she  became  a  little  monkey,  and  began  to  jump,  skip, 
and  leap  about  the  chamber  like  an  ordinary  monkey. 
At  this  metamorphosis  all  the  ladies  uttered  dreadful 
screams,  and  the  queen,  still  more  alarmed,  was  nearly 
dying  of  despair;  she  desired  the  ladies  to  remove  the  sprig 
of  hawthorn  from  its  head.  After  a  great  deal  of  diffi- 
culty they  laid  hold  of  the  little  creature,  and  removed 
the  fatal  flower  from  her  head;  but  vainly:  she  .was  already 
a  monkey,  a  confirmed  monkey,  and  required  neither  suck- 
ling nor  nursing;  all  that  she  wanted  was  filberts,  walnuts, 
or  chestnuts. 

"Barbarous  Fanferluche,"  cried  the  queen  sorrow- 
fully, "what  have  I  done  to  be  so  cruelly  treated  by  you? 
What  will  become  of  me?  What  a  disgrace  will  it  be  to 
me  for  all  my  subjects  to  think  I  have  given  birth  unto  a 
monster!  What  detestation  the  king  will  have  for  such 
a  child!"  She  burst  into  tears,  and  begged  her  ladies  to 
advise  her  what  she  should  do  in  so  urgent  an  affair. 

"Madam,"  said  the  senior  of  her  attendants,  "the  king 
must  be  persuaded  that  the  princess  is  dead,  and  this 
monkey  must  be  shut  up  in  a  box  and  thrown  into  the 
sea,  for  it  would  be  a  dreadful  thing  if  you  were  to  keep 
any  longer  a  brute  of  this  kind." 

The  queen  would  hardly  consent  to  this;  but  on  being 
told  that  the  king  was  coming  to  her  room,  she  was  so 
confused  and  troubled  that,  without  more  deliberation, 
she  told  her  maids  of  honor  to  do  what  they  liked  with 
the  little  monkey.  • 

They  then  took  it  into  another  apartment,  inclosed  it 
in  a  box,  and  ordered  one  of  the  queen's  footmen  to 
throw  it  into  the  sea.  He  immediately  set  out  on  his 
errand.  Behold  our  young  princess,  then,  exposed  to 
extreme  danger.  The  man,  seeing  that  the  box  was  a 
very  nice  one,  was  sorry  to  part  with  it,  so  he  seated  him- 
self on  the  seashore,  and  took  the  little  monkey  out  with 
the  resolution  of  killing  it,  for  he  did  not  know  that  it 


190  OLDt  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

was  his  sovereign's  child;  but  while  he  held  it  in  his 
arms  he  heard  a  loud  noise,  which  made  him  turn  his 
head,  when  he  saw  an  open  chariot,  resplendent  with  gold 
and  precious  stones,  drawn  by  six  unicorns  and  preceded 
by  a  band  of  military  music.  On  the  cushions  of  the 
chariot  sat  a  queen,  bearing  her  crown  and  royal  mantle, 
and  holding  on  her  lap  her  little  son,  who  was  four  years 
old. 

The  footman  recognized  in  this  queen  his  mistress'  sis- 
ter, who  had  been  to  congratulate  her  on  the  birth  of  a 
child;  but  learning  that  the  young  princess  was  dead, 
she  had  very  sorrowfully  taken  her  departure  on  her  re- 
turn to  her  own  kingdom.  She  was  in  a  profound  reverie 
on  the  miseries  of  queens,  when  her  son  cried  out:  "I 
should  like,  how  I  should  like,  to  have  that  little  mon- 
Key!''  The  queen,  looking  up,  saw  the  prettiest  little 
monkey  that  was  ever  beheld.  The  footman  was  for 
hastily  making  his  retreat,  but  was  prevented:  the  queen 
gave  him  a  large  sum  of  money  for  the  monkey,  which, 
being  gentle  and  playful,  she  called  Babiola.  Thus,  not- 
withstanding our  princess'  hard  fate,  she  fortunately  fell 
into  the  hands  of  the  queen  her  aunt. 

When  the  latter  arrived  at  her  court  the  little  prince 
begged  that  he  might  have  Babiola  as  a  playmate.  He 
had  her  dressed  like  a  princess;  new  clothes  were  made 
for  her  every  day,  and  she  was  taught  to  walk  on  her 
feet;  it  was  impossible  to  Fnd  a  prettier  or  more  agree- 
able looking  little  monkey.  Her  little  face  was  as  black 
as  jet  with  a  white  frill  round  her  neck,  and  tufts  of  red 
hair  round  her  ears;  her  little  hands  were  not  larger  than 
the  wings  of  a  butterfly,  and  the  vivacity  of  her  eyes 
gave  indications  of  so  much  talent  that  there  was  no  oc- 
casion for  surprise  at  any  of  her  wonderful  actions. 

The  prince,  who  was  very  fond  of  her,  won  her  heart 
with  his  unceasing  attentions;  she  was  very  careful  not 
to  bite  him,  and  whenever  she  saw  him  crying  she  cried 
too.  She  had  already  been  four  years  with  the  queen 
when  she  began  to  stammer  like  a  child  trying  to  speak; 
everybody  was  mightily  surprised  at  this  circumstance, 
but  that  surprise  was  changed  to  utter  amazement  when 
she  began  to  talk  in  a  clear  and  sweet  voice,  and  so  dis- 
tinctly that  not  a  word  of  what  she  said  was  lost.  "Won- 
derful!" cried  all  the  world;  "Babiola  speaking!  Babiola 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  101 

thinking'/'  The  queen  soon  wished  to  have  her  again  for 
her  own  amusement,  and  she  was  taken  to  her  apart- 
ment, to  the  great  sorrow  of  the  prince;  he  cried  a  great 
deal  at  her  loss,  and  to  console  him,  dogs  and  cats,  birds, 
squirrels,  and  even  a  little  horse  called  Criquetin,  which 
danced  the  saraband,  were  given  to  him;  but  he  would 
have  preferred  Babiola  to  them  all  fifty  times  over. 

On  ner  side  also  the  change  was  not  agreeable:  she  was 
more  constrained  with  the  queen  than  with  the  prince; 
she  was  required  to  answer  like  a  sibyl  to  a  hundred  in- 
genious and  learned  questions,  which  sometimes  she 
could  not  easily  resolve.  When  a  foreign  ambassador  ar- 
rived she  was  always  shown  dressed  in  a  velvet  or  brocade 
gown  with  a  frill  round  her  neck;  when  the  court  was  in 
mourning  she  wore  a  long  black  crape  mantle  which 
incommoded  her  very  much;  she  was  not  allowed  to  ea,t 
anything  for  which  she  felt  inclined,  a  physician  always 
prescribing  her  food,  at  which  she  was  not  at  all  pleased, 
for  she  was  as  wayward  as  might  be  expected  of  a  little 
monkey  born  a  princess. 

The  queen  appointed  her  masters,  who  well  exercised 
the  vivacity  of  her  mind;  she  excelled  in  playing  on  the 
harpsichord,  a  marvelously  good  one  having  been  made 
for  her  in  an  oyster  shell:  painters  came  from  all  the 
four  quarters  of  the  world,  and  especially  from  Italy,  to 
take  her  likeness;  her  renown  spread  from  pole  to  pole, 
for  until  that  time  a  monkey  with  the  gift  of  speech 
had  never  been  heard  of. 

The  prince,  graceful  and  witty,  and  as  handsome  as 
painters  represent  Cupid,  was  a  prodigy  no  less  extraor- 
dinary; he  visited  Babiola,  and  sometimes  amused  him- 
self in  her  company:  their  conversations,  generally  witty 
and  lively,  sometimes  took  a  serious  and  moral  turn. 
Babiola  had  a  heart,  and  that  heart  was  not  metamor- 
phosed like  the  rest  of  her  little  person;  she  became, 
then,  very  fond  of  the  prince — in  fact,  too  fond.  The 
unfortunate  Babiola  did  not  know  what  to  do;  she  passed 
her  nights  on  the  top  of  a  window  shutter,  or  in  the 
chimney  corner,  and  would  not  go  into  the  basket  lined 
with  wadding  and  feathers,  very  soft  and  clean,  which 
had  been  prepared  for  her.  Her  governess  (for  she  had 
one)  often  heard  her  sigh,  and  sometimes  complain  and 
weep;  her  melancholy  increased  as  her  mind  expanded. 


192  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

and  she  never  saw  herself  in  a  looking-glass  without 
striving,  out  of  vexation,  to  break  it;  so  that  it  was 
commonly  said:  "A  monkey  will  always  be  a  monkoy; 
Babiola,  with  all  her  talents,  cannot  rid  herself  of  the 
malicious  temper  of  her  species." 

As  the  prince  grew  up  he  became  fond  of  hunting, 
balls,  plays,  arms,  books;  but  with  regard  to  the  little 
monkey,  he  hardly  ever  mentioned  her  name.  Things 
progressed  very  differently  on  her  side;  she  loved  him 
better  at  twelve  years  old  than  she  had  loved  him  at  six, 
and  sometimes  reproached  him  for  his  forgetfulness:  he 
thought  that  he  quite  made  up  for  his  neglect  by  giving 
her  a  rosy-cheeked  apple  or  some  roasted  chestnuts. 
But  he  very  often  had  her  with  him  when  feeling  idle 
and  wanting  amusement,  and  the  young  attendants  who 
came  to  receive  his  orders  could  scarcely  help  laughing 
at  the  grave  face  that  Babiola  turned  on  them. 

At  last  the  fame  of  Babiola's  reputation  reached  the 
kingdom  of  the  monkeys  itself,  and  King  Magotin  con- 
ceived a  violent  desire  to  marry  her.  With  this  view  he 
dispatched  a  famous  embassy  to  ask  her  of  the  queen;  he 
had  no  difficulty  in  making  his  prime  minister  under- 
stand his  intentions,  but  the  latter  would  have  had  in- 
finite trouble  to  express  them,  but  for  the  assistance  of 
the  parrots  and  magpies,  vulgarly  called  mags;  these 
chattered  a  great  deal,  and  the  jackdaws  who  followed 
the  equipage  would  have  been  very  sorry  to  prattle  a  bit 
less  than  they. 

A  large  ape,  called  Mirlifiche,  was  the  head  of  the  em- 
bassy: he  had  a  fine  carriage  built  of  cards,  on  which 
were  painted  the  amors  of  King  Magotin  and  the  monkey 
Monette,  famous  in  themonkeyian  empire;  poor  Monette 
died  most  cruelly  under  the  claw  of  a  wild  cat,  little  ac- 
customed to  her  frolicsome  tricks.  The  happiness  of 
Magotin  and  Monette  during  their  marriage  was  repre- 
sented, and  the  sensible  grief  in  which  the  king  had  in- 
dulged on  her  decease.  Six  white  rabbits,  of  an  excellent 
breed,  drew  this  carriage,  which  was  called  by  way  of  dis- 
tinction, the  state  carriage;  it  was  followed  by  a  chariot 
constructed  of  straw,  painted  with  various  colors,  and 
which  contained  the  monkeys  destined  to  attend  Babiola: 
you  should  have  seen  how  they  were  adorned;  they 
seemed  indeed  to  be  going  to  a  wedding,  The  remainder 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


193 


of  the  retinue  was  composed  of  little   spaniels,  small 
greyhounds,  Spanish  cats,   Muscovy  rats,  a  few  hedge- 


hogs, cunning  weasels,  and  dainty  fo^es;  some  drove  the 
.chariots,  others  carried  the  baggage.  At  the  head  of  the 
whole  went  Mirlitiche,  graver  than  a  Roman  dictator, 


194  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

wiser  than  Cato,  and  mounted  on  a  young  leveret  which 
ambled  better  than  the  nicest  English  nag. 

The  queen  knew  nothing  of  this  magnificent  embassy 
until  it  arrived  at  her  palace.  The  bursts  of  laughter 
from  the  people  and  her  guards  causing  her  to  look  out 
at  the  window,  she  beheld  the  most  extraordinary  caval- 
cade she  had  ever  seen  in  her  life.  On  its  arrival,  Mirli- 
fiche,  followed  by  a  considerable  number  of  apes,  ad- 
vanced toward  the  chariot  containing  the  monkeys,  and 
giving  his  paw  to  the  large  monkey  call  Gigogna,  he  as- 
sisted her  to  descend;  then  loosing  the  little  parrot  which 
was  to  serve  as  his  interpreter,  he  awaited  that  splendid 
bird's  presenting  itself  to  the  queen,  and  asking  an  audi- 
ence for  himself. 

The  parrot,  gently  rising  in  the  air,  went  to  the  win- 
dow at  which  the  queen  was  standing,  and  said  to  her,  in 
the  prettiest  voice  in  the  world:  "Madam,  his  excellency, 
Count  Mirlifiche,  ambassador  from  the  most  renowned 
Magotin,  king  of  all  the  monkeys,  demands  an  audience 
of  your  majesty,  to  treat  on  business  of  the  utmost  im- 
portance." 

"My  pretty  parrot,"  said  the  queen,  caressing  him, 
"you  had  better  first  take  something  to  eat,  and  a  glass 
of  wine,  after  which  I  consent  to  your  telling  Count  Mir- 
lifiche that  he  is  very  welcome  to  my  kingdom,  with  all 
who  accompany  him.  If  his  journey  hither  from  Mago- 
tia  has  not  too  much  fatigued  him,  he  may  immediately 
enter  my  audience  chamber,  where  I  shall  await  him  on 
my  throne,  with  all  my  court." 

At  these  words  the  parrot  kissed  his  foot  twice,  flapped 
his  wings,  sang  a  little  air  in  token  of  his  joy,  and  re- 
suming his  flight,  he  soon  perched  on  Mirlifiche's  shoul- 
der, and  whispered  in  his  ear  the  favorable  answer  he  had 
just  received.  Mirlifiche  was  not  insensible  to  the  kind- 
ness with  which  he  was  received,  and  immediately  desired 
Margot,  a  magpie  who  set  himself  up  for  sub-interpreter, 
to  ask  one  of  the  queen's  officers  for  a  room  in  which  he 
might  repose  for  a  short  time,  previous  to  his  expected 
audience.  He  was  immediately  shown  into  an  apartment 
paved  with  marble,  painted  and  gilded,  and  altogether 
one  of  the  neatest  in  the  palace.  He  had  no  sooner  en- 
tered it  with  part  of  his  suit  than,  as  apes  are  all  very 
inquisitive  searchers,  they  ferreted  out  a  certain  corner 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  195 

in  which  divers  pots  of  sweetmeats  were  arranged;  be- 
hold our  gluttons  then,  one  with  a  glass  jar  of  apricots, 
another  with  a  bottle  of  syrup;  one  with  pastry,  another 
with  alicampane.  The  chattering  gentry  who  composed 
part  of  the  cortege  were  vexed  at  seeing  a  repast  in  which 
there  was  neither  hemp-seed  nor  millet-seed;  and  a  mag- 
ie,  a  mighty  great  talker  flew  into  the  audience  cham- 
er,  and  respectfully  approaching  the  queen:  "Madam," 
said  he  to  her,  "I  am  too  devoted  a  servant  of  your  maj- 
esty to  be  a  willing  accomplice  in  the  havoc  which  is 
making  in  your  nice  sweetmeats:  Count  Mirlifiche  has 
already  eaten  three  boxes  himself:  he  was  busily  engaged 
discussing  the  fourth,  without  any  respect  to  your  majesty, 
when  my  heart  being  moved  at  so  shocking  an  abuse  of 
your  majesty's  hospitality,  I  left  to  inform  you  of  the 
fact." 

"I  thank  you  kindly,  my  pretty  little  magpie,"  said 
the  queen,  smiling;  "but  I  dispense  with  your  anxious 
zeal  for  my  jars  of  sweetmeats;  I  abandon  them  in  honor 
of  Babiola,  whom  I  love  with  all  my  heart." 

The  magpie,  rather  ashamed  of  the  much  ado  about 
nothing  which  he  had  made,  retired  without  saying  a 
word. 

The  ambassador,  followed  by  his  suite,  shortly  after 
entered  the  apartment.  He  was  not  dressed  quite  in  the 
fashion  of  the  day:  indeed,  since  the  loss  of  the  famous 
Pagotin,  ambassador,  from  the  court  of  the  Tuileries  to 
that  of  King  Magoti'n,  and  who  had  cut  such  a  figure  in 
the  monkey  Vorld,  they  had  had  no  good  model.  His 
hat  was  pointed  at  the  top,  and  he  wore  in  it  a  green 
feather;  he  wore  a  blue  paper  shoulder-belt  covered  with 
gold  spangles,  large  bows  of  ribbons  at  his  knees,  and  iie 
'carried  a  walking-stick.  Immediately  on  his  entering  the 
room,  the  parrot,  who  had  the  reputation  of  being  a  tol- 
erably good  poet,  having  composed  a  very  grave  ha- 
rangue, advanced  to  the  foot  of  the  throne  on  which  the 
queen  was  seated,  and,  Iddressing  himself  to  Babiola, 
spoke  as  follows: 

"Know  the  great  power,  oh,  royal  dame, 
Of  those  all-bright  and  star-lifce  eyes; 
Magotin  feels  the  tender  flame, 
And  apes  and  cats,  a  loving  train, 
Tell  in  sweet  music  hia  young  sighs. 


196  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

The  fair  Monette,  his  former  love, 
With  a  wild  cat  in  combat  strove; 
And  when  the  gentle  monkey  fell, 
Magotin  loved  his  queen  so  well, 
He  vowed  eternal  truth — for  then, 
He  felt  he  ne'er  could  love  again; 
But  you  have  made  the  king  forget 
The  fainter  charms  of  Queen  Monette. 

Sweet  long-tail,  once  Magotin  sat 
Enthroned  a  very  king  in  fat; 
But  vacant  now  is  half  his  throne, 
And  naught  is  left  but  skin  and  bone; 
For  (once  believe  a  Poet  true) 
He's  dying,  monkey  dear!  for  you. 
Olives  and  nuts  he  used  to  eat, 

Such  pleasant  fruits  his  realms  abound  In, 
He  cracked  the  nuts  (his  favorite  meat), 

And  threw  the  shells  at  all  around  him. 
These  were  his  freaks.     Alas,  such  sport 
Has  ever  fled  Magotin's  court! 
Unless  you  deign,  most  noble  queen, 
To  cure  his  kingship  of  the  spleen. 
Oh,  half  the  riches  who  can  tell, 
Of  the  rich  realms  you'll  then  reign  over? 
Figs,  raisins,  nuts  will  please  you  well, 
You'll  be  the  greatest  monkey  belle, 

And  the  first  monkey  be  your  lover." 

During  this  discourse  the  queen  turned  her  eyes  to- 
ward Babiola,  who  for  her  part  was  more  disconcerted  than 
she  had  ever  been  before  in  the  whole  course  of  her  life. 
The  queen  was  anxious  to  ascertain  the  sentiments  of 
Babiola  before  she  made  any  answer.  She,  however,  told 
the  parrot  to  give  his  excellency  the  ambassador  to  un- 
derstand that  she  favored  his  king's  pretensions,  and 
would  further  the  marriage  in  all  that  depended  on  her. 
The  audience  being  over,  she  retired,  and  was  followed 
into  her  closet  by  Babiola.  "My  little  monkey,"  said 
the  queen  to  her,  "I  must  confess  that  I  shall  be  very 
sorry  to  part  with  you,  but  there  would  be  great  danger 
in  denying  Magotin,  who  asks  you  in  marriage,  for  I  have 
not  yet  forgotten  that  his  father  sent  two  hundred  thou- 
sand apes  into  the  field  to  wage  a  fierce  war  against  our 
kingdom,  and  they  devoured  so  many  of  our  subjects' that 
we  were  obliged  to  conclude  a  shameful  peace. 

"Then  I  am  to  understand,  madam/'  replied  Babiola 
impatiently,  "that  you  have  resolved  to  sacrifice  me  to 
this  vile  monster  in  order  to  avoid  his  anger.  I  entreat 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  19?- 

your  majesty,  however,  to  grant  me  at  least  a  delay  of  a 
few  days,  when  I  will  acquaint  you  with  my  final  resolu- 
tion." 

"That  is  but  right,"  said  the  queen;  "but  if  you  take 
my  advice  you  will  determine  promptly;  consider  the 
honors  that  await  you,  the  magnificence  of  the  embassy, 
and  the  maids  of  honor  who  are  sent  for  yo'j." 

"I  do  not  know  what  he  may  have  done  for  Monette," 
replied  little  Babiola  disdainfully;  "but  I  know  very  well 
that  I  am  but  little  moved  by  the  sentiments  with  which 
he  affects  to  honor  me." 

Thereupon  she  arose,  and  after  courtesying  gracefully, 
quitted  the  closet  in  search  of  the  prince,  to  relate  her 
sorrows  to  him.  Directly  he  saw  her  he  called  out: 
"Well,  Babiola,  when  shall  we  have  the  pleasure  of 
dancing  at  your  wedding?" 

"I  do  not  know,  sir,"  said  she  sorrowfully;  "but  I  find 
myself  in  so  deplorable  a  condition  that  it  is  no  longer  in 
my  power  to  withhold  my  secret  from  you,  and  although 
it  puts  my  delicacy  to  the  blush,  I  must  confess  to  you 
that  you  are  the  only  person  whom  I  could  have  wished 
to  have  for  my  husband." 

"Husband!"  said  the  prince,  bursting  into  a  loud 
laugh — "husband  indeed!  My  little  monkey,  I  am 
charmed  at  what  you  tell  me;  I  hope,  however,  that  you 
will  excuse  me  if  I  do  take  advantage  of  your  confession; 
for  in  truth,  neither  in  height,  looks,  or  manners  are  we 
quite  suited  to  each  other." 

"I  agree  with  you,"  said  she;  "and  most  especially  our 
hearts  are  not  alike.  You  are  an  ingrate;  I  have  long 
perceived  it,  and  I  am  very  foolish  to  feel  an  affection 
for  a  prince  who  is  so  little  worthy  of  it." 

"But,  Babiola,"  said  he,  "think  now,  were  we  mar- 
ried, what  anxiety  I  should  feel  to  see  you  at  the  top  of 
a  sycamore  tree,  hanging  from  a  branch  by  your  tail. 
Take  my  advice;  let  us  laugh  at  this  affair  for  the  sake 
of  your  honor  and  my  own;  marry  King  Magotin,  and  in 
token  of  the  good  friendship  that  subsists  between  us, 
send  me  your  first  baby." 

"It  is  fortunate  for  you,  sir,"  added  Babiola,  "that  I 
am  not  quite  a  monkey  in  my  min*d;  any  other  than 
I  would  have  already  scratched  out  your  eyes,  bitten  off 
your  nose,  and  torn  off  your  ears;  but  I  abandon  you 


298  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

to  the  reflections  that  you  will  one  day  make  on  your 
unworthy  conduct."  She  could  say  no  more,  for  her 
governess  came  in  to  inform  her  that  the  Ambassador 
Mirlifiche  had  gone  to  her  apartment  with  magnificent 
presents. 

They  consisted  of  a  toilet  of  spider's  web,  embroid- 
ered with  little  glowworms,  an  egg-shell  serving  to  hold 
the  combs,  and  a  white-heart  cherry  for  a  pincushion,  all 
the  linen  being  ornamented  with  paper  lace;  there  were 
besides,  in  a  basket,  several  shells  properly  arranged, 
some  serving  as  drops  to  earrings,  others  for  bodkins, 
etc.,  and  all  as  brilliant  as  diamonds;  but  better  than  all 
these  were  a  dozen  boxes  of  sweetmeats,  and  a  little  glass 
box  which  contained  a  nut  and  an  olive;  the  key  of  the 
box,  however,  was  lost,  at  which  Babiola  was  rather 
vexed. 

The  ambassador  informed  her  in  grumbling,  which  is 
the  language  made  use  of  in  the  kingdom  of  Magotia, 
that  his  monarch  was  more  moved  with  her  charms  than 
he  had  ever  been  by  those  of  any  other  monkey;  that  he 
was  building  a  palace  for  her  in  the  topmost  branches  of 
a  fir  tree;  that  he  had  sent  her  these  presents,  and  par- 
ticularly the  nice  sweetmeats,  to  show  his  attachment. 
"But,"  added  he,  "the  strongest  proof  of  his  kindness, 
and  the  one  of  which  you  ought  to  be  most  sensible,  is, 
madam,  the  care  he  has  taken  to  have  his  portrait 
painted,  that  you  may  anticipate  in  some  measure  the 
pleasure  you  will  feel  on  seeing  himself."  He  thereupon 
displayed  the  portrait  of  the  King  of  the  Apes  seated  on 
a  large  block  of  wood  eating  an  apple. 

Babiola  turned  her  face  on  one  side  so  as  to  look  no 
longer  on  so  disagreeable  a  figure,  and,  grumbling  two  or 
three  times,  she  gave  Mirlifiche  to  understand  that  she 
was  obliged  to  his  master  for  his  esteem,  but  that  she  had 
not  yet  made  up  her  mind  whether  she  would  marry  or 
remain  single. 

Meantime  the  queen  had  determined  not  to  incur  the 
monkey's  anger;  and  by  no  means  thinking  that  any  great 
ceremony  was  requisite  in  sending  Babiola  where  'she  in- 
tended she  should  go,  she  had  everything  prepared  for 
her  departure.  On  hearing  of  this,  despair  took  entire 
possession  of  Babiola's  mind.  The  prince's  contempt  on 
one  band,  the  queen's  indifference  on  another,  and  still 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


199 


more  the  idea  of  such  a  husband,  determined  her  to 
make  her  escape.  This  was  not  a  very  difficult  thing, 
for  since  she  had  been  able  to  speak  she  had  not  been 
tied  up;  she  went  and  came  at  pleasure,  and  as  often 
entered  her  room  by  the  window  as  by  the  door. 

She  made  haste  therefore  to  set  out,  and  leaping  from 
tree  to  tree,  and  from  branch  to  branch,  she  reached  the 
bank  of  a  river;  the  excess  of  her  despair  prevented  her 


fully  comprehending  the  danger  she  ran  in  trying  to 
swim  across  it,  so  without  a  moment's  consideration  she 
plunged  in,  and  immediately  sank  to  the  bottom.  As 
she  did  not  lose  her  senses,  she  looked  about  her,  and 
perceived  a  magnificent  grotto,  adorned  all  over  with 
shells.  She  entered,  and  was  received  by  a  venerable  old 
man  whose  long  white  beard  reached  below  his  waist:  he 
was  seated  on  a  couch  of  reeds  and  flags,  he  wore  on  his 
head  a  crown  of  wild  poppies,  and  was  reclining  against 
a  rock,  whence  sprang  several  fountains  which  augmented 
the  river. 


200  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

"Ah!  what  has  brought  you  here,  little  Babiola?"  said 
he,  offering  her  his  hand. 

"Sir,"  answered  she,  "I  am  an  unfortunate  little  mon- 
key, and  am  flying  from  a  frightful  ape  whom  they  wish 
to  make  my  husband." 

"I  know  more  of  your  story  than  you  imagine,"  added 
the  wise  old  man;  "it  is  true  that  you  abhor  Magotin, 
but  it  is  no  less  true  that  you  are  in  love  with  a  young 
prince,  who  returns  your  love  with  indifference." 

"Ah!  sir,"  cried  Babiola,  sighing,  "let  us  not  speak  of 
him;  his  remembrance  augments  my  grief." 

"He  will  not  always  be  insensible  to  love,"  continued 
the  companion  of  the  fishes.  "I  know  that  he  is  destined 
for  the  fairest  princess  in  the  world." 

"Unfortunate  that  I  am!"  said  Babiola,  "then  he  will 
never  be  mine." 

The  good  man  smiled,  and  said  to  her:  "Do  not  afflict 
yourself,  my  good  Babiola,  time  is  a  powerful  master; 
only  be  careful  not  to  lose  the  little  glass  box  that  King 
Magotin  sent  you,  and  as  you  have  got  it,  by  good  luck, 
in  your  pocket,  I  need  say  no  more  about  it  to  you;  here 
is  a  crocodile  who  travels  very  steadily;  seat  yourself  on 
its  back,  and  it  will  conduct  you  where  you  ought  to  go." 

"After  the  obligations  that  you  have  imposed  on  me," 
said  she  to  him,  "I  cannot  depart  without  knowing  your 
name." 

"I  am  called  Biroqua,"  said  he,  "father  of  the  river  of 
that  name,  which  is,  as  you  may  perceive,  rather  large 
and  famous." 

Babiola  then  seated  herself  on  the  crocodile's  back  very 
confidently,  and  they  traveled  for  some  time  on  the 
water:  after  passing  rather  a  long  winding,  the  crocodile 
reached  the  bank.  It  would  have  been  difficult  to  find 
anything  more  tasteful  than  its  English  saddle  and  the 
rest  of  its  harness;  there  were  even  little  pistols  in  the 
saddle  bow,  the  holsters  for  which  were  made  of  the  shells 
of  crabs. 

Babiola  was  proceeding  on  her  journey  with  entire  con- 
fidence in  the  sage  Biroqua's  promises,  when  she  sud- 
denly heard  a  loud  noise.  Alas!  alas!  it  was  the  Ambas- 
sador Mirlifiche  and  his  retinue,  who  were  returning  to 
Magotia,  sorrowful  and  desolate  at  Babiola's  flight.  An 
ape  of  this  troop  had  mounted  a  walnut-tree,  and  was 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  201 

knocking  down  walnuts  for  the  amusement  of  the  reti- 
nue, when  just  as  he  had  reached  the  highest  branches 
he  perceived  Babiola,  seated  on  a  crocodile  which  was 
slowly  traveling  up  the  open  country.  At  this  sight  he 
uttered  such  a  loud  shout  that  the  assembled  apes  asked 
him  anxiously  in  their  language  what  was  the  matter. 
No  sooner  had  he  told  them  than  the  parrots,  magpies 
and  jackdaws  were  immediately  let  loose,  and  flew  to 
where  she  was;  and  on  their  report  the  ambassador,  the 
monkeys  and  the  remainder  of  the  equipage  hastened  to 
arrest  her. 

What  a  misfortune  for  Babiola!  a  greater,  or  more  ter- 
rible, it  would  have  been  difficult  to  bring  upon  her;  she 
was  obliged  to  get  into  the  state  carriage,  which  was 
thereupon  surrounded  by  vigilant  monkeys,  some  foxes, 
and  a  cock  who  perched  on  the  roof  and  kept  watch  day 
and  night.  An  ape  leading  the  crocodile,  as  a  very  rare 
animal,  brought  up  the  rear  of  the  cavalcade,  which  con- 
tinued its  journey  to  the  great  grief  of  Babiola,  whose  only 
companion  was  Madam  Gigona,  a  peevish,  ill-tempered 
monkey. 

At  the  end  of  three  days,  which  passed  without  any  ad- 
venture, the  guides  lost  their  way,  and  they  all  arrived 
at  a  large  town  of  which  they  did  not  know  the  name; 
but  seeing  a  fine  garden,  the  door  of  which  was  open, 
they  halted  therein  and  fell  upon  everything  it  contained 
as  though  they  had  been  in  a  conquered  country.  One 
cracked  walnuts,  another  gobbled  cherries,  while  a  third 
robbed  a  plum-tree;  in  a  word,  there  was  not  a  little 
monkey-brat  among  them  who  did  not  both  eat  and  lay 
in  a  good  store. 

You  must  know  that  this  town  was  the  capital  of  the 
kingdom  in  which  Babiola  had  been  born;  that  the  queen, 
her  mother,  resided  there,  and  that  since  the  misfortune 
she  had  experienced  in  seeing  her  daughter  metamor- 
phosed into  a  monkey  by  the  sprig  of  hawthorn,  she 
would  not  allow  either  monkey,  marmoset  or  baboon  to 
remain  in  the  kingdom,  or  anything  which  might  recall 
the  fatal  and  deplorable  adventure  to  her  remembrance. 
An  ape  was  then  looked  upon  as  a  disturber  of  the  public 
peace.  Judge,  then,  of  the  universal  astonishment  of 
the  people  at  seeing  a  carriage  of  card  arrive,  with  a 
chariot  of  painted  straw,  and  the  rest  of  this  most  sur- 


202  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

prising  monkey  equipage,  perhaps  the  most  extrordi- 
uary  that  was  ever  seen  since  tales  were  tales  and  fairies 
were  fairies. 

The  news  flew  like  lightning  to  the  palace,  and  the 
queen  was  astounded,  fearing  that  the  long-tailed  gentry 
were  about  to  attack  her  authority.  She  promptly  as- 
sembled her  council,  issued  a  proclamation  condemning 
them  all  as  guilty  of  high  treason;  and  not  wishing  to 
lose  an  opportunity  of  making  so  famous  an  example  for 
the  future,  she  sent  her  guards  into  the  garden,  with 
orders  to  seize  upon  all  the  monkeys.  They  threw  large 
nets  over  the  trees,  and  soon  brought  their  chase  to  a 
conclusion;  and  notwithstanding  the  high  respect  due  to 
the  quality  of  ambassador,  that  character  suffered  so 
much  in  the  person  of  Mirlifiche  that  he  was  unmerci- 
fully thrown  to  the  bottom  of  a  cave  and  put  under  a 
large  empty  tub,  where  he  and  his  comrades  were  im- 
prisoned with  the  lady-monkeys  who  had  accompanied 
Babiola. 

For  her  part  she  felt  a  secret  joy  at  this  turn  in  her 
affairs.  "When  misfortunes  reach  a  certain  point  they 
cease  to  afflict,  and  even  death  is  met  without  a  murmur: 
this  was  precisely  her  situation,  her  heart  being  occupied 
by  the  image  of  a  prince  who  despised  her,  and  her  mind 
filled  with  the  frightful  idea  of  King  Magotin,  whose 
wife  she  was  about  to  become. 

For  the  rest,  I  must  not  forget  to  state  that  her 
clothes  were  so  pretty,  and  her  manners  so  uncommon, 
that  those  who  had  taken  her  stayed  to  regard  her  aa 
something  marvelous;  and  when  she  epoke  to  them  their* 
astonishment  was  riot  a  little  augmented,  although  they 
had  already  heard  of  the  admirable  Babiola.  The  queen 
who  had  found  her,  being  unacquainted  with  her  niece's 
metamorphosis,  had  frequently  written  to  her  sister  that 
she  had  a  very  wonderful  little  monkey,  and  had  re- 
quested her  to  come  and  see  it;  but  the  afflicted  queen 
had  always  hastily  passed  over  that  part  of  the  letter  with- 
out reading  it.  The  guards,  transported  with  admira- 
tion, carried  Babiola  to  a  large  gallery,  and  having 
erected  a  little  throne,  she  ascended  it  more  like  a 
sovereign  than  a  captive  monkey;  and  the  queen  acci- 
dentally paasing,  was  so  forcibly  struck  with  her  pretty 
appearance  and  the  gracious  compliments  she  paid  her, 
that  in  spite  of  herself  nature  spoke  in  the  child's  favor. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  203 

She  took  her  up  in  her  arms.  The  little  creature,  ani- 
mated on  her  side  with  feelings  that  she  had  never  before 
experienced,  threw  herself  on  the  queen's  neck  and  said 
such  tender  and  engaging  things  that  she  struck  every- 
body who  heard  her  with  admiration. 

"No,  great  queen,"  cried  she,  "it  is  not  the  fear  of 
approaching  death,  with-which  I  learn  you  have  threat- 
ened the  unfortunate  race  of  monkeys,  that  terrifies  me, 
or  induces  me  to  take  the  means  of  pleasing  and  soften- 
ing you;  the  close  of  my  life  is  not  the  greatest  misfor- 
tune'that  could  befall  me,  and  I  possess  feelings  so  much 
above  my  condition  that  I  should  regret  even  the  least 
step  taken  to  preserve  that  life;  no,  madam,  it  is  for 
yourself  alone  that  I  love  you.  Your  crown  moves  me 
much  less  toward  you  than  your  merit." 

What  answer  could  the  queen  make  to  so  courteous 
and  complimentary  a  speech?  More  dumb  than  a  carp, 
she  stared  with  surprise,  thinking  that  she  was  in  a 
dream,  and  feeling  her  heart  very  much  affected. 

She  carried  the  monkey  to  her  closet.  When  they  were 
alone  she  said  to  her:  "Do  not  delay  a  moment  the  rela- 
tion of  your  adventures  to  me;  for  I  feel  that  of  all  the 
animals  which  people  my  menageries  and  which  I  keep 
in  my  palace,  you  will  be  the  one  that  I  shall  love  the 
most:  I  assure  you  that  on  your  account  I  will  even 
pardon  the  apes  who  accompany  you." 

"Ah!  madam,"  cried  Babiola;  "I  ask  you  nothing  for 
them:  my  misfortune  was  to  be  born  a  monkey,  and  the 
same  misfortune  has  gifted  me  with  a  discernment  which 
will  make  me  suffer  until  my  death;  for,  in  a  word,  what 
do  I  not  feel  when  I  see  myself  in  a  looking-glass,  little, 
ugly,  and  black,  having  paws  covered  with  hair,  with  a 
long  tail  and  teeth  always  ready  to  bite,  being  conscious 
at  the  same  time  that  I  have  taste,  delicacy,  and  feelings, 
and  do  not  want  intelligence?" 

"Are  you  capable,"  said  the  queen,  "of  feeling  an 
attachment?" 

Babiola  sighed,  but  made  no  answer. 

"Oh!"  continued  the  queen,  "you  must  tell  me 
whether  you  love  an  ape,  a  rabbit,  or  a  squirrel;  for  if 
you  are  disengaged  I  have  a  dwarf  who  will  be  an  excel- 
lent match  for  you."  At  this  proposition  Babiola  put  on 
a  disdainful  air,  at  which  the  queen  laughed  heartily. 


204  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

"Do  not  afflict  yourself,"  said  she  to  her,  "and  inform 
me  by  what  miracle  you  speak." 

"All  that  I  know  of  my  adventures/'  replied  Babiola, 
"is  that  the  queen  your  sister  had  no  sooner  quitted  you 
after  the  birth  and  death  of  the  princess  your  daughter, 
than  she  ;aw,  as  she  was  passing  the  seashore,  one  of 
your  valets  who  was  on  the  point  of  drowning  me.  I  was 
forcibly  taken  from  him  by  her  order;  and  by  the  most 
unheard-of  prodigy  in  the  world,  speech  and  reason  came 
to  me.  Many  masters  were  appointed  to  teach  me  various 
languages  and  to  play  on  musical  instruments;  at  last, 
madam,  I  became  sensible  of  my  misfortunes,  and — but 
what  ails  you,  madam?"  cried  she,  seeing  the  queen's 
countenance  pale  and  covered  with  a  cold  perspiration; 
"whence  this  extraordinary  change  which  I  remark  in 
your  person?" 

"I  am  dying,"  said  the  queen,  in  a  feeble  and  inartic- 
ulate voice;  "I  am  dying,  my  dear  and  too  unfortunate 
daughter;  to-day,  then,  I  have  at  last  recovered  you." 
At  these  words  she  fainted  away.  The  terrified  Babiola 
ran  for  assistance;  the  queen's  ladies  hastened  to  give 
her  water,  to  unlace  her  stays,  and  to  put  her  in  bed,  and 
Babiola  crept  into  bed  with  her  without  observation,  be- 
ing extremely  small. 

When  the  queen  returned  to  herself,  after  the  long 
swoon  into  which  the  princess' discourse  had  thrown  her, 
she  desired  to  be  left  alone  with  the  ladies  who  were  ac- 
quainted with  the  secret  of  her  daughter's  fatal  birth; 
and  informed  them  of  what  had  befallen  her,  at  which 
they  were  so  dismayed  that  they  knew  not  how  to  advise 
her. 

She  commanded  them,  however,  to  tell  her  what  they 
thought  she  had  better  do  in  so  grievous  a  juncture. 
Some  advised  her  to  have  the  monkey  stifled;  others  to 
shut  her  up  in  a  hole,  and  a  third  party  to  have  her  sent 
back  again  to  the  sea.  The  queen  cried  and  sobbed :  "She 
is  so  clever,"  said  she,  "what  a  pity  to  see  her  reduced  to 
this  miserable  condition  by  an  enchanted  sprig  of  haw- 
thorn! But,"  continued  she,  "she  is  my  daughter  and 
my  blood:  it  is  I  who  have  drawn  upon  her  the  wicked 
Fanferluche's  wrath,  and  is  it  just  that  she  should  suffer 
for  the  hatred  that  that  fairy  bears  to  me?" 

"But,  madam,"  cried  her  old  lady  of  honor,  "we  must 


'OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  205 

save  your  reputation;  what  would  the  world  think  if  you 
were  to  declare  that  a  monkey  were  your  child?  It  is 
unnatural  for  so  beautiful  a  person  as  you  to  have  such 
children." 

The  queen  lost  all  patience  at  hearing  her  argue  in  this 
way,  but  soon  consented,  with  no  less  warmth,  that  it 
was  necessary  to  exterminate  the  little  monster.  At  last, 
however,  her  majesty  resolved  to  shut  up  Babiola  in  a 
castle,  where  she  would  be  well  nursed  and  kindly  treated 
during  the  remainder  of  her  life. 

When  Babiola  heard  that  the  queen  intended  to  put 
her  in  prison,  she  quietly  slipped  out  of  the  bed,  and 
jumping  from  the  window  on  to  a  tree  in  the  garden,  she 
made  her  escape  into  a  large  forest,  and  left  everybody  in 
alarm  at  not  finding  her. 

She  passed  the  night  in  the  hollow  of  an  oak-tree,  in 
which  she  had  time  to  reflect  on  the  cruelty  of  her  fate: 
but  what  most  pained  her  was  the  necessity  she  was  under 
of  quitting  the  queen;  however,  she  preferred  being  her 
own  mistress  in  voluntary  exile  to  losing  her  liberty 
forever. 

On  the  appearance  of  daylight  she  continued  her  jour- 
ney without  knowing  whither  she  was  to  go,  and  consid- 
ering and  reconsidering  a  thousand  times  the  singularity 
of  so  extraordinary  an  adventure.  "What  a  difference," 
cried  she,  "between  what  I  am  and  what  I  ought  to 
be!"  Tears  fell  in  abundance  from  the  little  eyes  of  poor 
Babiola. 

She,  however,  journeyed  on,  sometimes  fearful  that 
the  queen  might  pursue  her,  and  sometimes  alarmed  lest 
some  of  the  monkeys  who  had  escaped  from  the  cave 
might  seize  on  and  take  her  against  her  will  to  the  King 
Magotin;  but  still  proceeding,  without  following  either 
road  or  footpath,  she  at  last  arrived  at  a  large  desert,  in 
which  there  was  neither  house  nor  tree,  fruit,  grass  nor 
spring:  she  entered  on  it  without  reflection,  and  it  was 
not  until  she  began  to  feel  hungry  that  she  discovered, 
too  late,  the  extent  of  her  imprudence  in  attempting  to 
travel  through  such  a  country. 

Two  days  and  two  nights  she  passed  without  being  able 
to  catch  even  a  gnat  or  a  little  worm,  and  fear  of  death 
seized  her.  She  became  so  weak  that  she  swooned  and 
fell  on  the  earth;  when  remembering  the  olive  and  the 


206  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

nut  that  were  still  in  the  little  glass  box,  she  thought 
that  she  might  make  a  light  repast  of  them.  Joyful  at 
this  ray  of  hope,  she  picked  up  a  stone,  broke  the  box  in 
pieces  and  began  to  eat  the  olive. 

Hardly  had  she  put  her  teeth  therein  when  an  abun- 
dance of  perfumed  oil  flowed  from  it,  which  falling  on  her 
paws,  they  immediately  became  the  most  delicate  hands 
in  the  world;  her  surprise,  as  may  be  imagined,  was  ex- 
treme. She  instantly  took  some  of  this  oil  and  rubbed 
herself  all  over  with  it,  when,  marvelous  to  relate!  she 
made  herself  so  beautiful  that  nothing  in  the  world  could 
equal  her  charms.  She  felt  that  she  had  large  eyes,  a 
small  mouth,  and  a  handsome  nose;  she  was  dying  for 
want  of  a  looking-glass.  At  last  she  bethought  herself  of 
making  one  of  the  largest  piece  of  glass  of  her  broken 
box.  Oh,  what  joy!  oh,  what  delight!  when  she  saw  her 
own  loveliness.  Her  clothes  had  changed  with  herself; 
her  hair  fell  in  a  thousand  flowing  ringlets,  and  her  com- 
plexion was  as  fresh  as  the  flowers  in  spring. 

The  first  moments  of  her  surprise  being  passed,  her 
hunger  became  still  more  violent,  and  her  sorrow  aug- 
mented proportionately.  "What!"  said  she,  "so  beau- 
tiful and  so  young,  born  princess  as  I  am,  must  I  perish 
in  this  desolate  spot?  Oh,  cruel  fortune!  that  hast  con- 
ducted me  here,  to  what  hast  thou  destined  me?  Is  it  to 
add  to  afflictions  alone,  that  thou  hast  wrought  so  happy 
and  so  unhoped-for  a  change  in  my  person?  And  thou, 
0  venerable  Biroqua!  who  didst  so  generously  save  my 
life,  wilt  thou  too  leave  me  to  perish  in  this  frightful 
solitude?" 

In  vain  did  the  poor  princess  invoke  assistance  in  this 
solitary  desert;  not  even  echo  answered  to  her  voice. 
The  want  of  food  tormented  her  to  such  a  degree  that 
she  at  last  took  the  nut  and  cracked  it;  when,  as  she 
threw  the  shell  from  her,  she  was  amazed  to  see  issue 
therefrom  architects,  painters,  masons,  upholsterers, 
sculptors,  and  all  kinds  of  different  workmen.  They 
immediately  commenced  operations;  some  designed  a 
palace,  others  built  it,  and  others  furnished  it;  one  party 
painted  the  rooms,  another  cultivated  the  gardens;  all 
was  resplendent  with  gold  and  azure.  No  sooner  was  this 
done  than  a  sumptuous  repast  was  served,  and  sixty 
princesses,  more  handsomely  dressed  than  queens,  led  by 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  207 

squires,  and  followed  by  pages,  came  and  paid  Babiola 
the  highest  compliments,  inviting  her  to  the  feast  that 
was  awaiting  her.  It  may  be  supposed  that  she  did  not 
require  much  persuasion;  she  immediately  advanced  to- 
ward the  saloon,  and  there,  seating  herself  at  the  table 
with  a  queenly  air,  she  ate  like  one  famished. 

No  sooner  had  she  risen  from  table  than  her  treasurers 
brought  into  her  presence  fifteen  thousand  large  coffers, 
as  large  as  hogsheads,  full  of  gold  and  diamonds.  They 
asked  her  if  she  would  allow  them  to  pay  the  workmen 
who  built  her  palace.  She  said  that  that  was  but  right, 
but  made  it  a  condition  that  they  should  also  build  near 
it  a  town,  marry  and  settle  therein.  To  this  they  all  con- 
sented, and  the  town  was  finished  in  three-quarters  of 
an  hour,  although  it  was  fifty  times  larger  than  Rome. 
Behold  the  numerous  prodigies  which  issued  from  a  little 
nut! 

The  princess  resolved  to  send  a  splendid  embassy  to  the 
queen  her  mother,  and  to  take  this  opportunity  of  de- 
servedly reproaching  the  young  prince  her  cousin  for  his 
former  treatment  of  her.  While  taking  the  necessary 
measures  for  this  purpose,  she  amused  herself  by  witness- 
ing ring-races,  she  always  giving  the  prize;  she  also  went 
to  the  theater,  hunted  and  fished;  for  a  river  had  also 
been  conducted  thither.  The  fame  of  her  beauty  soon 
spread  itself  over  all  the  earth,  and  kings  from  its  four 
quarters  came  to  pay  her  court;  as  also  giants  taller  than 
mountains,  and  figures  smaller  than  rats. 

It  happened  one  day,  during  a  grand  festival  and  tour- 
nament, that  as  several  knights  were  breaking  lances,  a 
quarrel  arose,  and,  disregardful  of  her  presence,  they 
fought  in  earnest.  The  princess  in  anger  descended  from 
her  balcony  to  ascertain  and  punish  the  originators  of 
the  strife,  and  to  assist  the  wounded,  when,  as  the  visor 
of  one  of  these  was  raised,  what  were  her  feelings  at  see- 
ing the  prince  her  cousin!  Though  not  quite  dead,  he 
was  so  severely  injured  that  she  was  herself  nearly  dying 
with  surprise  and  grief.  She  had  him  instantly  borne  to 
the  finest  apartment  in  the  palace,  where  nothing  requi- 
site to  effect  his  cure  was  wanting;  the  best  medicine, 
eminent  surgeons,  nice  broth  and  syrups,  all  were  there. 
Babiola  herself  made  the  bandages  and  lint,  watering 
them  with  her  tears — tears  wHch  might  have  served  as  a 


208  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

balsam  for  her  wounded  cousin.  Wounded  indeed  he 
was  in  more  than  one  sense  of  the  word;  for  without 
reckoning  half  a  dozen  sword  and  as  many  lance  wounds 
which  had  pierced  him  through  and  through,  he  had  been 
at  that  court  for  some  time  incognito,  and  had  felt  the 
power  of  Babiola's  eyes  to  an  incurable  extent.  It  is  then 
easy  to  judge  what  were  his  feelings  when  he  rea^  in  that 
amiable  princess'  countenance  that  she  was  in  the  utmost 
grief  at  witnessing  the  condition  to  which  he  was  reduced. 

I  will  not  not  stop  to  repeat  to  you  the  terms  in  which 
his  heart  prompted  him  to  thank  her  for  the  kindness 
she  had  manifested  toward  him;  those  who  heard  him 
were  surprised  that  so  sick  a  man  should  be  able  to  show 
so  much  passion  and  gratitude.  The  Princess  Babiola, 
who  blushed  more  than  once  at  it,  begged  him  to  be  silent, 
but  his  emotion  and  the  ardor  of  his  protestations  were 
so  extreme  that  she  saw  him  suddenly  sink  in  dreadful 
anguish.  Until  then  she  had  borne  all  with  tirmness; 
but  on  seeing  him  in  so  terrible  a  condition  she  uttered 
loud  cries,  tore  her  hair,  and  gave  everybody  reason  to 
think  that  her  heart  must  be  of  easy  access,  since  in  so 
short  a  time  it  could  feel  so  great  a  passion  for  a  stranger; 
for  it  was  not  known  in  Babiola's  kingdom  that  the 
prince  was  her  cousin,  and  that  she  had  loved  him  from 
her  earliest  youth. 

It  appears  that,  while  traveling,  the  prince  was  at- 
tracted by  Babiola's  reputation  to  her  court,  and  being 
unacquainted  with  any  one  there  who  could  introduce  him 
to  the  princess,  he  thought  that  nothing  could  so  well  serve 
his  turn  as  the  performance  in  her  presence  of  five  or  six 
heroic  feats,  such  as  cutting  off  the  legs,  arms  or  heads 
of  a  few  knights  in  a  tournament.  He  found,  however, 
no  one  complaisant  enough  to  allow  him  so  to  do.  A 
rude  scuffle  then  ensued;  the  strongest  party  as  usual 
beat  the  weaker,  and  to  that  weaker  party  unfortunately 
belonged — as  I  have  already  stated — our  prince. 

Babiola,  in  despair,  ran  along  the  highway  without 
either  carriage  or  guards;  she  entered  a  wood,  and  fainted 
away  at  the  foot  of  a  tree,  whence  the  Fairy  Fanferluche, 
who  never  slept,  but  was  always  seeking  opportunities 
for  evil  actions,  carried  her  on  a  cloud  blacker  than  ink, 
and  which  sailed  along  more  swiftly  than  the  wind.  The 
princess  remained  for  some  time  insensible;  when  she  re- 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  209 

covered  nothing  could  equal  her  surprise  at  finding  her- 
self so  far  from  the  earth,  and  so  near  to  the  pole.  The 
footing  on  clouds  is  not  very  solid,  so  that  as  she  ran  to 
and  fro  she  seemed  to  be  treading  on  feathers,  and  the 
cloud  separating  at  times,  she  had  much  difficulty  to  pre- 
vent herself  from  falling;  she  found  no  one  with  whom 
to  share  her  grief,  for  the  wicked  Fanferluche  had  ren- 
dered herself  invisible;  she  had  time  to  think  of  her  dear 
prince  and  the  condition  in  which  she  had  left  him,  and 
gave  way  to  the  most  mournful  thoughts  that  can  take 
possession  of  the  mind.  "What,"  cried  she,  "am  I  capa- 
ble of  surviving  him  I  love,  and  of  allowing  the  fear  of 
approaching  death  to  find  a  place  in  my  heart?  Ah!  if 
the  sun  would  scorch  me  to  death  with  his  beams  what  a 
good  office  would  he  render  me;  if  I  could  drown  myself 
in  the  rainbow  how  happy  should  I  be!  But  alas!  all  the 
zodiac  is  deaf  to  my  voice;  Sagittarius  for  me  has  no 
arrows;  for  me  the  Bull  no  horns,  and  the  Lion  no  teeth. 
Perhaps  the  earth  will  be  more  obliging,  and  will  offer  to 
me  at  least  the  point  of  a  rock  on  which  I  may  slay  my- 
self. Oh,  prince!  dear,  dear  cousin,  why  art  thou  not 
here  to  witness  for  thy  sake  the  most  tragical  leap  on 
which  desperate  lover  ever  resolved?"  As  she  finished 
these  words  she  ran  to  the  end  of  the  cloud  and  precipi- 
tated herself  from  it,  like  an  arrow  shot  from  an  English 
bow. 

All  who  saw  her  thought  that  the  moon  was  falling; 
and  as  Cynthia  was  just  then  on  the  wane,  several  people 
who  adored  her,  and  who  remained  some  time  without 
seeing  her  again,  put  on  deep  mourning  for  her  loss,  per- 
suading themselves  that  the  sun,  in  a  fit  of  jealousy,had 
done  the  moon  this  evil  turn. 

However  great  the  princess'  wish  for  death,  die  she  did 
not;  she  fell  into  a  glass  bottle  in  which  the  fairies  gen- 
erally keep  their  ratafia  in  the  sun;  but  what  a  bottle! 
there  is  not  a  tower  in  the  world  so  large.  Fortunately 
it  was  empty,  or  she  must  have  been  drowned  therein 
like  a  fly. 

The  six  giants  who  guarded  it  immediately  recognized 
Babiola!  They  were  the  same  who  had  resided  in  her 
court  and  who  loved  her,  as  did  aH  the  world  but  the 
malignant  Fanferluche.  She,  who  did  nothing  by 
chance,  had  transported  each  of  these  giants  hither  on  a 


210  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


flying  dragon,  and  the  six  dragons  guarded  the  bottle 
while  the  giants  slept.  While  Babiola  was  there  she  fre- 
quently regretted  her  monkey-skin;  she  lived  like  the 
chameleon  on  air  and  dew. 

The  prison  in  which  she  was  thus  confined  was  un- 
known to  any  one;  of  course,  therefore,  the  young  prince 
her  cousin  was  ignorant  of  it,  for  he  was  not  dead,  but 
unceasingly  asked  for  Babiola.  He  easily  perceived, 
from  the  melancholy  looks  of  all  who  attended  on  him, 
that  there  was  some  subject  of  general  grief  at  court;  his 
natural  discretion  prevented  his  seeking  to  learn  what  it 
might  be,  but  when  convalescent  he  pressed  so  ear- 
nestly that  he  was  apprised  of  the  princess'  loss,  for  they 
had  not  the  courage  to  conceal  it  longer  from  him. 
Those  who  had  seen  her  enter  the  wood  maintained  that 
she  had  been  devoured  by  lions;  a  second  party  thought 
she  had  destroyed  herself  in  despair;  and  others  opined 
that  she  had  lost  her  wits,  and  was  wandering  over  the 
world. 

As  this  latter  opinion  was  the  least  terrible,  and  as  it 
gave  the  prince  a  slight  ground  for  hope,  he  seized  upon 
it;  and  set  out  on  his  horse  Criquetin,  of  whom  I  have 
already  spoken,  but  of  whom  I.  forgot  to  say  that  he  was 
descended  from  Bucephalus,  and  one  of  the  best  horses 
of  the  age  in  which  he  flourished.  The  prince  was  at- 
tended by  two  of  his  most  faithful  followers.  Putting 
the  bridle  on  his  horse's  neck,  the  prince  allowed  him 
to  choose  his  own  road:  sometimes  he  called  upon  the 
princess,  but  in  vain.  Echo  alone  replied. 

At  last  he  arrived  at  the  bank  of  a  large  river.  Cri- 
quetin was  thirsty,  and  went  into  it  to  drink,  and  the 
prince  continuing  to  shout  at  the  top  of  his  lungs: 
"Babiola!  beautiful  Babiola,  where  are  you?"  he  heard 
a  voice  whose  sweetness  seemed  to  charm  the  waves: 

"  Advance!"  it  replied,  "and  you  shall  learn  where  she 
is." 

At  these  words  the  prince,  as  daring  as  he  was  affec- 
tionate, gave  Criquetin  two  or  three  thrusts  with  his 
spurs,  which  made  him  swim  onward  until  he  came  to  a 
gulf  into  which  the  water  precipitated  itself  more  rap- 
idly, when  the  prince  sank  with  his  horse  to  the  bottom, 
thoroughly  persuaded  that  he  was  on  the  point  of  being 
drowned. 


THE  PRINCE  SEARCHING  FOR  BABIOLA, 


OLD,  OLD  FAIR7  TALES, 

He  luckily,  however,  had  arrived  at  the  residence  of 
the  good  man  Biroqua,  who  was  then  celebrating  the  wed- 
ding of  his  daughter  with  one  of  the  richest  and  deepest 
rivers  in  the  country;  all  the  aquatic  deities  were  in  his 
grotto,  where  the  tritons  and  the  sirens  were  making  a 
charming  melody,  and  the  river  Biroqua,  lightly  dressed, 
was  dancing  gayly  with  the  Thames,  the  Seine,  the  Eu- 
phrates, and  the  Ganges,  who  had  certainly  come  a  long 
distance  to  amuse  themselves  together.  Criquetin,  who 
was  very  polite,  stayed  very  respectfully  at  the  entrance 
of  the  grotto,  and  the  prince,  still  more  polite  than  his 
horse,  made  a  low  bow  and  asked  if  it  were  permitted  for 
a  mortal  like  him  to  make  his  appearance  in  the  midst  of 
so  distinguished  an  assembly. 

Biroqua  spoke  with  an  affable  air,  and  replied  that 
they  would  feel  both  honored  and  gratified  by  his  pres- 
ence. "I  have  been  waiting  for  you  some  days/''  con- 
tinued he;  "I  am  in  your  interests,  sir,  and  those  of  the 
princess  are  likewise  dear  to  me:  you  must  rescue  her 
from  the  fatal  place  in  which  the  vindictive  Fanferluche 
has  imprisoned  her;  she  is  in  a  bottle." 

"Ah;  what  do  you  tell  me,"  cried  the  prince,  inter- 
rupting him,  "my  princess  in  a  bottle?" 

"Yes,"  answered  the  wise  old  man;  "and  she  is  greatly 
distressed;  but  I  warn  you,  sir,  that  it  is  by  no  means  an 
easy  task  to  conquer  the  giants  and  dragons  who  guard 
her,  at  least  if  you  do  not  follow  my  advice.  You  must 
leave  your  good  horse  here,  and  mount  a  winged  dolphin 
which  I  have  been  training  for  you  a  long  time;"  he  then 
had  the  dolphin  brought,  saddled  and  bridled,  and  it 
pranced  and  curveted  so  well  that  Criquetin  was  quite 
jealous  of  him. 

Biroqua  and  his  companions  immediately  set  about 
arming  the  prince.  They  equipped  him  in  a  brilliant 
cuirass  of  gilded  carp-scales;  his  headpiece  consisted  of 
a  large  periwinkle  shell,  shaded  by  a  large  cod's  tail 
which  hung  in  the  form  of  a  handsome  plume  of  heron's 
feathers;  a  naiad  girded  him  with  an  eel,  from  which 
hung  a  formidable  sword  made  of  the  backbone  of  a 
large  fish;  and  he  was  then  presented  with  a  magnificent 
tortoise-shell  as  a  shield.  Thus  equipped,  not  the  small- 
est gudgeon  who  saw  him  but  conceived  that  he  beheld 
the  god  of  soles;  and  verily,  the  young  prince  had  a  cer- 
tain air  that  is  rarely  met  with  among  mortals. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  213 

"Hope  springs  eternal  in  the  human  breast;"  and  that 
of  soon  finding  the  charming  princess  with  whom  he  was 
in  love  inspired  our  prince  with  a  joy  that  he  had  been 
incapable  of  feeling  since  her  loss.  The  chronicle 
whence  this  authentic  tale  is  extracted  relates  that  he 
ate  with  a  very  good  appetite  at  Biroqua's  table,  and  that 
he  thanked  all  the  company  for  their  kindness  in  no 
common  terms;  after  which  he  rose  from  table,  bade 
adieu  to  Criquetin,  then,  mounting  the  winged  fish,  he 
immediately  set  out. 

At  the  close  of  the  day  the  prince  found  himself  al- 
ready so  high  that  he  entered  for  the  sake  of  a  little  rest 
into  the  kingdom  of  the  moon.  The  rarities  that  he  ob- 
served there,  and  which  have  been  so  well  described  by 
later  travelers,  would  have  arrested  his  serious  attention, 
if  he  had  not  had  a  more  pressing  object  in  view;  to 
wit,  that  of  liberating  Babiola  from  the  bottle,  in  which 
she  had  then  been  residing  several  months. 

Day  no  sooner  broke  than  away  he  rode  on  his  dolphin 
again,  and  long  ere  noon  he  had  discovered  the  princess 
surrounded  by  the  giants  and  dragons  that  the  fairy,  by 
virtue  of  her  little  wand,  had  retained  near  her;  and  so 
little  idea  had  Fanferluche  that  any  one  was  powerful 
enough  to  free  Babiola  from  captivity  that  she  confi- 
dently reposed  on  the  vigilance  of  her  terrible  guards, 
with  the  certainty  of  its  prolongation. 

The  lovely  Babiola  was  pitifully  looking  toward  heaven, 
and  addressing  there  her  sorrowful  lamentations,  when 
she  saw  the  flying  dolphin  and  the  prince  who  was  com- 
ing to  her  deliverance.  She  could  hardly  believe  her  eyes 
when  she  saw  an  armed  knight  near  her  bottle,  although 
she  knew,  from  her  own  experience,  that  to  some  persons 
the  most  extraordinary  things  are  of  easy  accomplish- 
ment. "May  it  not  be  through  the  malice  of  some 
wicked  fairies,"  said  she,  "that  this  knight  is  thus  trans- 
ported through  the  air?  Alas!  how  much  I  pity  him,  if 
a  bottle  or  caraffe  is  destined  for  his  prison  as  it  serves 
for  mine." 

While  these  reflections  occupied  her  mind,  the  giants, 
who  perceived  the  prince  over  their  head  and  took 
him  for  a  kite  which  some  little  boy  in.the  moon  was  fly- 
ing, cried  out  to  each  other:  "Lay  hold  of  the  string!  lay 
hold  of  the  string!  it  will  serve  to  divert  us;"  but  while, 


214  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

under  this  impression,  they  stooped  to  pick  him  up,  he 
fell  on  them,  cut  and  thrust,  and  knocked  them  into  as 
many  pieces  as  a  pack  of  cards  cut  and  thrown  to  the 
wind.  On  hearing  the  first  noise  of  this  encounter,  the 
princess  turned  her  head  and  recognized  her  own  dear 
prince.  Oh!  what  joy,  to  be  certain  that  he  was  yet 
alive;  but  oh!  what  anxiety,  to  see  him  exposed  to  such 
perils,  fighting  in  the  midst  of  the  terrible  giants  and 
dragons  which  were  then  attacking  him.  She  uttered 
fearful  cries,  and  his  danger  nearly  cost  her  her  life. 

However,  the  enchanted  fishbone  sword,  with  which 
Biroqua  had  armed  the  prince,  struck  no  useless  blows; 
and  the  nimble  dolphin,  rising  and  stooping  just  at  the 
proper  times,  was  a  marvelous  help  to  the  prince;  so  that 
in  a  short  time  the  field  was  covered  with  these  monsters. 

The  impatient  prince,  who  -saw  his  princess  through 
the  glass,  would  have  broken  it  in  pieces  if  he  had  not 
been  fearful  of  wounding  her;  so  he  determined  on  de- 
scending through  the  neck  of  the  bottle.  When  he 
reached  the  bottom  he  threw  himself  at  Babiola's  feet 
and  respectfully  kissed  her  hand.  "Sir,"  said  she  to 
him,  "it  is  well,  in  order  that  you  may  restrain  your  emo- 
tions, that  I  inform  you  of  the  motives  which  have  inter- 
ested me  so  tenderly  In  your  preservation.  Learn,  then, 
that  we  are  nearly  related;  that  I  am  the  daughter  of  the 
cjueen  your  aunt;  and  that  same  Babiola,  whom  you  found 
in  the  form  of  a  little  monkey  on  the  seashore;  who  was 
weak  enough  to  express  for  you  an  attachment;  and 
whom  you  despised." 

"Ah,  madam!"  cried  the  prince,  "can  I  believe  so  un- 
heard-of a  prodigy?  What!  you  have  been  a  monkey; 
you  have  loved  me,  and  I  have  known  your  love  and  my 
neart  has  been  capable  of  refusing  the  greatest  of  earthly 
blessings!" 

"Well,"  replied  the  princess,  smiling  at  his  surprise, 
"I  should  now,  perhaps,  have  but  a  very  poor  opinion  of 
your  taste  had  you  then  conceived  any  attachment  for 
me;  but  let  us  depart;  I  am  tired  of  my  prison,  and  I 
fear  my  enemy;  let  us  go  to  the  queen  my  mother,  and 
inform  her  of  all  these  extraordinary  events,  which  can- 
not fail  to  interest  her." 

"With  all  my  heart,  madam,"  said  the  amorous  prince; 
and  getting  on  the  winged  dolphin's  back  and  taking  her 


OLD,  OLD  FAlUr  TALES.  215 

in  his  arms,  "let  us  go,"  said  he,  "and  restore  to  her,  in* 
you,  the  most  amiable  princess  in  the  world." 

The  dolphin  gently  rose  in  the  air,  winging  his  course 
toward  the  capital  in  which  the  queen  was  spending  her 
sorrowful  existence.  The  flight  of  Babiola  did  not  leave 
her  a  moment's  repose:  she  could  not  help  thinking  of 
her  favorite,  and  thus  continually  calling  to  her  remem- 
brance the  pretty  things  that  Babiola  had  said  to  her; 
monkey  as  she  was,  the  queen  would  have  given  half  her 
kingdom  for  another  sight  of  her. 

When  the  prince  arrived  he  disguised  himself  as  an 
old  man,  and  demanded  a  private  audience  of  the  queen. 
"Madam,"  said  he,  "I  have  studied  from  my  most 
tender  youth  the  necromantic  art:  you  may  judge  of  my 
skill  by  the  fact  that  I  am  not  ignorant  of  the  hatred 
that  Fanferluche  bears  toward  you,  or  of  its  disastrous 
effects;  but  dry  your  tears,  madam;  for  that  same  Babi- 
ola whom  you  have  seen  so  ugly  is  now  about  to  be  re- 
stored to  you,  the  most  beautiful  princess  in  the  world; 
provided,  however,  that  you  will  pardon  the  queen  your 
sister  for  the  cruel  war  that  she  has  waged  against  you, 
and  conclude  the  peace  by  marrying  the  Princess  Babiola 
with  the  prince  your  nephew." 

"I  cannot  flatter  myself  that  what  you  affirm  is  true,'" 
replied  the  queen,  weeping;  "wise  old  man,  you  wish  to 
soothe  my  affliction:  I  have  lost  my  dear  daughter^  I 
have  no  longer  a  husband,  my  sister  pretends  that  my 
kingdom  belongs  to  her;  her  son  is  as  unjust  as  his 
mother,  they  both  persecute  me,  and  I  will  enter  into  no 
alliance  with  them." 

"Fate  wills  it  otherwise,"  continued  he,  "and  I  am 
commissioned  to  tell  you  so." 

"Ah!  but  of  what  use  would  it  be,"  added  the  queen, 
"to  consent  to  this  marriage?  The  wicked  Fanferluche 
has  too  much  power  and  is  too  malicious  not  to  oppose  it 
always." 

"Do  not  alarm  yourself  on  that  score,  madam, "replied 
the  good  man;  "promise  me  only  that  you  will  not  oppose 
the  marriage  in  question." 

"I  promise  everything,"  cried  the  queen,  "provided  I 
see  my  dear  daughter  once  again." 

The  prince  went  out  and  ran  to  where  the  princess  was 
awaiting  him.  She  was  surprised  to  see  him  disguised, 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

which  made  it  necessary  for  him  to  relate  to  her  that  for 
some  time  past  the  two  queens  had  had  violent  alterca- 
tions, and  that  there  had  been  much  animosity  between 
them;  but  that  at  last  he  had  made  his  aunt  consent  to 
his  wishes.  The  princess  was  in  ecstasies:  she  went  to 
the  palace,  and  all  who  met  her  observed  so  perfect  a  re- 
semblance in  her  to  the  queen  her  mother  that  curiosity 
induced  them  to  follow  her  to  learn  who  she  was. 

When  the  queen  perceived  her,  her  heart  was  so  vio- 
lently agitated  that  it  required  no  other  testimony  to 
prove  the  truth  of  v/hat  had  been  told  her.  The  princess 
threw  herself  at  her  mother's  feet,  and  was  received  by 
the  queen  with  open  arms.  After  a  silence  of  some  mo- 
ments, drying  each  other's  tears  with  a  thousand  kisses, 
they  gave  vent  to  their  feelings  in  all  those  tender  ex- 
pressions which  may  be  easily  imagined  on  such  an  occa- 
sion: then,  turning  to  her  nephew,  the  queen  received 
him  very  favorably,  and  reiterated  to  him  all  the  promises 
she  had  made  to  the  necromancer.  She  would  have  said 
more,  but  a  noise  in  the  courtyard  drawing  her  attention 
to  the  window,  she  had  the  agreeable  surprise  of  seeing 
*the  queen  her  sister  arrive.  The  prince  and  princess 
looking  also,  recognized  near  her  the  venerable  Biroqua, 
and  even  the  good  Criquetin,  who  was  also  of  the  party. 
They,  one  and  all,  gave  utterance  to  loud  cries  of  joy; 
they  hastened  to  embrace  each  other  with  inexpressible 
transport.  The  nuptials  of  the  prince  and  the  fair  Babi- 
ola  were  celebrated  immediately,  in  spite  of  the  wicked 
Fanferluche,  whose  power  and  malice  were  thus  equally 
confounded. 


THE  THREE  BEARS. 

IK  a  certain  German  forest  near  the  Hartz  mountains 
there  lived  three  exceedingly  domestic  bears. 

There  was  the  Father-bear,  the  Mother-bear,  and  a 
little  son.  They  had  a  nice  little  house;  a  chair  each  to 
sit  on,  a  bed  to  sleep  in,  and  a  basin  each  for  milk  and 
honey,  which  was  their  favorite  food. 

The  father's  were  the  largest,  the  mother's  were'a  little 
smaller,  the  little  bear's  were  the  smallest  of  all. 


«       >«-«,.  * •'   -  v  ,.'•> *  ''  * 

..,.-.. 

'  r 

.... 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

One  day  they  boiled  their  milk  and  honey  for  break- 
fast, poured  it  into  their  basins,  and  went  out  for  a  walk 
while  it  cooled. 

Now  it  happened  that  very  near  the  bears'  dwelling 
lived  a  woodman's  little  daughter,  all  by  herself. 


She  was  called  Golden  Hair.  Her  father  and  mother 
were  both  dead,  so  she  was  quite  alone.  She  kept  her 
small  house  very  neat,  made  herself  a  bed  of  moss  and 
beech  leaves,  and  used  to  pick  berries  for  her  food.  ^  Of 
course  the  poor  little  thing  had  no  cme  to  teach  her  right 
from  wrong,  and  she  lived  quite  like  a  little  savage  in  her 
forest  home;  only  she  was  a  gentle  creature,  and  used  to 
sing  like  the  birds  in  the  trees  under  which  she  played. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

On  the  very  morning  that  the  three  bears  went  for  a 
walk,  Golden  Hair  also  was  rambling  about  the  wood. 

By  and  by  she  came  to  the  bears'  house,  and  as  the 
window  was  open,  she  peeped  in. 


Seeing  no  one  there  she  lifted  the  latch  and  walked 
into  the  house.  This  was  very  rude  of  Golden  Hair;  but 
then  she  knew  no  better. 

She  saw  the  three  basins,  and  looked  into  them,  and 
then,  taking  up  the  tiny  bear's,  she  tasted  his  milk  and 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  219 

honey.  She  thought  it  very  nice  indeed;  so  she  sat  down 
in  the  little  bear's  chair  to  eat  it;  but  the  chair  was  much 
too  small  for  her,  and  she  broke  the  seat  and  fell  through, 
basin  and  all. 

Now  this  was  certainly  stealing,  but  Golden  Hair  did 
not  know  that  she  ought  not  to  take  that  which  was  not 
her  own.  A  tiny  bear  may  be  only  a  tiny  bear,  but  still 
he  has  a  right  to  his  own  things. 

Then  Golden  Hair  went  upstairs,  and  there  she  saw 
three  beds  all  in  a  row.  The  first  was  the  Father-bear's, 
the  second  was  the  Mother-bear's,  the  last  was  the  Tiny 
bear's. 

Golden  Hair  thought  that  they  looked  very  comfort- 
able, and  as  she  was  a  little  tired,  she  got  into  the  tiny 
bear's,  and  fell  asleep. 

By  and  by  the  bears  came  home. 

Tiny-bear  looked  at  his  chair  and  basin,  and  said; 

"Somebody  has  been  here." 

And  Father-bear  said  gruffly: 

"Somebody  has  been  here." 

And  Mother-bear  said,  not  quite  so  gruffly: 

"Somebody  has  been  here." 

Then  they  went  to  the  tablfc  and  looked  at  their  basins. 

And  the  Father-bear  said  gruffly: 

"Somebody  has  touched  my  basin." 

And  the  Mother-bear  said  less  gruffly: 

"Somebody  has  touched  my  basin." 

And  Tiny-bear  said  in  a  high,  shrill  voice: 

"And  somebody  has  broken  mine." 

Then  they  all  went  upstairs  and  looked  in  their  beds. 

"There  is  no  one  in  my  bed,"  said  Father-bear  gruffly. 

"There  is  nobody  in  my  bed,"  said  the  Mother-bear 
less  gruffly. 

"There  is  a  little  girl  in  my  bed,"  squeaked  Tiny-bear, 
"and  she  has  eaten  up  my  breakfast,  and  broken  my 
chair,  and  cracked  my  basin." 

The  shrill  voice  of  Tiny-bear  woke  up  Golden  Hair, 
and  she  started  out  of  bed. 

The  window  was  open,  and  she  was  so  frightened  that 
she  jumped  right  out  of  it  at  once,  and  ran  away;  and 
the  bears  went  to  the  window  and'watched  her,  and  saw 
her  disappear  in  the  forest. 

And  the  Father-bear  said  gruffly: 


2-20 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


"The  wolves  will  eat  her." 

And  the  Mother-bear  said  less  gruffly: 

"The  wolves  will  eat  her." 

And  Tiny-bear  squeaked  in  his  shrill  voice: 


"The  wolves  will  eat  her." 
But  they  did  not. 

Now  if  you  wish  very  much  to  know  what  became  of 
Golden  Hair,  I  will  tell  you. 
As  she  ran,  terrified,  through  the  wood,  she  fell  over 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  221 

the  trunk  of  a  tree,  and  while  she  lay  on  the  ground, 
weeping,  a  bee  buzzed  up  to  her  and  said: 

"Little  Golden  Hair,  what  has  happened?" 

And  Golden  Hair  said: 

"I  went  into  the  bears'  house,  beautiful  bee,  and  ate 
up  some  milk  and  honey;  and  then  I  got  into  Tiny-bear's 
bed  and  fell  asleep,  and  the  bears  came  home  and  found 
me;  and  I  was  so  frightened  that  I  jumped  out  of  the 
window,  and  I  have  just  fallen  down.  If  I  had  not 
jumped  out,  I  dare  say  they  would  have  killed  me." 

"Very  likely,"  buzzed  the  bee;  "I  dislike  bears  very 
much  myself,  and  never  cross  their  threshold.  They  eat 
our  honey,  and  have  no  manners;  and  then  their  figures 
are  so  very  awkward,  and  their  movements  so  uncouth! 
But  you  had  no  right  to  eat  Tiny-bear's  breakfast — that 
was  stealing,  and  it  was  wrong.  1  never  take  a  drop  of 
honey  from  a  flower  without  asking  its  leave  first." 

Golden  Hair  sobbed  out,  "that  she  did  not  know  it  was 
wrong." 

"Well,"  said  the  bee,  "I  don't  see  how  you  should,  as 
you  have  not  been  taught.  We  bees  have  often  pitied 
you.  Now  I  am  not  rich;  I  am  only  an  upholsterer  bee, 
and  I  don't  live  in  a  hive,  and  I  have  no  queen;  but  if 
you  like  to  live  with  me  and  be  my  little  girl,  I  will  do 
all  I  can  for  you." 

Golden  Hair  was  very  glad  to  accept  this  kind  offer,  for 
she  thought  that  honey  was  very  nice;  and  she  had  no 
doubt  that  it  would  be  her  food  if  she  lived  with  the 
upholsterer  bee. 

Then  the  bee  showed  the  child  where  she  lived,  in  a 
hollow  tree.  And  Golden  Hair  thought  it  was  a  very 
fine  dwelling,  for  the  bee  had  hung  it  all  round  with  cur- 
tains cut  from  red  poppy  leaves;  and  it  was  so  clean  that 
you  would  have  been  delighted  with  it. 

"Now,  Golden  Hair,"  said  the  bee,  "we  cannot  endure 
dirty  children.  Go  and  wash  yourself  in  the  stream; 
and  wash  your  frock,  and  hang  it  out  to  dry." 

And  Golden  Hair  did  as  she  was  told;  and  when  she 
was  nicely  dressed  again  in  a  clean  white  frock,  and  all 
her  golden  hair  lay  on  her  shoulders  glistening  in  the 
sun,  she  looked  very  pretty  indeed.  • 

And  she  played  all  day  with  the  butterflies  and  birds, 
and  when  the  sun  set  she  fell  asleep. 


222  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

The  next  day  the  bee  buzzed  in  her  ear  as  soon  as  it 
was  light,  and  woke  her  up. 

"Golden  Hair,"  she  said,  as  the  child  sat  up  and 
rubbed  her  sleepy  blue  eyes,  "we  can't  have  idle  people 
here.  I  hate  a  drone:  get  up  and  work." 

"I  have  nothing  to  do,"  said  Golden  Hair;  "I  can't 
make  honey." 

"But  you  can  do  a  great  many  other  things!  I  only 
wish  I  had  your  wonderful  hands,"  said  the  bee. 

"What  can  I  do?"  asked  Golden  Hair. 

"I  will  tell  you.  Get  up  and  take  a  wooden  spade, 
and  dig  up  the  sweetest  flowers  in  the  wood,  and  plant 
them  here  close  to  my  cell;  and  when  no  rain  comes, 
water  them,  and  don't  let  the  greedy  worms  eat  them  all 
up,  but  pick  them  off  the  leaves." 

Golden  Hair  did  as  she  was  told,  but  not  for  very  long. 

For  a  silly  butterfly  came  and  coaxed  her  to  run  a  race 
with  him,  and  laughed  at  her  for  grubbing  in  the  ground, 
and  making  her  hands  dirty. 

So  she  ran  races,  and  did  not  work. 

By  and  by  she  was  hungry,  and  she  said  to  the  butter- 
fly: 

"Will  you  give  me  some  honey  for  dinner?" 

"I  have  not  any  honey,"  he  answered;  "you  could  not 
expect  a  gentleman  like  me  to  provide  food.  It  is  quite 
beneath  me.  I  eat  a  little  bit  of  leaf  here  and  there." 

"Oh!  I  am  so  hungry!"  sobbed  Golden  Hair. 

"Absurd!  How  vulgar  you  are!"  sang  the  butterfly, 
and  he  flew  away;  for,  as  he  told  the  nearest  rose,  he 
hated  to  see  tears;  and  the  rose  smiled  at  his  wit,  and 
admired  his  fine  feelings. 

Golden  Hair  went  home  and  found  her  dinner  ready — 
the  purest  honey,  scented  with  lilac,  and  wild  thyme,  and 
honeysuckles,  and  she  ate  a  great  deal  of  it,  and  thanked 
the  bee. 

And  the  bee  said: 

"You  have  not  done  much  work.  If  I  had  been  as  idle 
as  you  are,  I  should  have  had  no  dinner  to  give  you." 

"It  was  all  the  butterfly's  fault!"  said  Golden  Hair. 

"Nonsense,"  said  the  bee,  "he  could  not  make  you 
idle  unless  you  cfyose  to  be  so.  Don't  tell  me!  One 
would  get  very  little  done  if  one  could  be  persuaded  to 
play  by  every  idle  insect  one  saw." 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  223 

"I  will  do  better  to-morrow,"  said  Golden  Hair. 

"Better  begin  to-day,"  answered  the  bee.  "Who  can 
tell" if  the. sun  will  shine  to-morrow?" 

So  Golden  Hair  worked  all  the  afternoon,  and  when 
night  came  she  ftelt  happy  and  satisfied,  as  everybody  does 
when  they  have  done  right. 

And  a  kind  nightingale,  who  had  been  pleased  to  see 
her  so  industrious,  came  and  sat  on  a  bough  close  by,  and 
sang  her  to  sleep.  The  next  day  a  robin  woke  her. 

"Get  up,"  he  said,  "Golden  Hair.  The  lark  is  sing- 
ing hymns,  and  it  is  a  pity  you  should  not  join  in  them; 
besides,  if  you  don't  get  up  early  you  will  find  no  worms." 

"Thank  you,"  said  Golaen  Hair,  "but  I  don't  eat 
worms;  I  breakfast  on  honey." 

"That's  very  well  for  dessert,"  said  Eobin;  "but  for 
food  I  prefer  something  more  substantial/' 

"I  should  like  a  few  cherries,"  sighed  Golden  Hair. 

''There  are  plenty  of  strawberries  in  the  wood,"  said 
Eobin,  "If  you  will  come  with  me,  I  will  show  you  where 
they  grow." 

And  he  showed  Golden  Hair  a  bed  of  ripe  red  straw- 
berries growing  on  a  sunny  bank.  They  were  quite 
delicious. 

"What  a  clever  bird  you  are!"  said  the  child,  as  she 
ate  her  breakfast  with  the  robin;  "and  yet  I  should  not 
have  thought  so,  judging  by  your  very  plain  suit,  though, 
to  be  sure,  your  breast  is  a  pretty  color." 

"We  must  not  judge  by  outside  show,"  said  Eobin. 
"Neither  I  nor  the  bee  are  as  gay  as  the  butterfly,  but  I 
think  I  may  say,  without  boasting,  that  we  are  worth  a 
dozen  of  him." 

And  Golden  Hair  thought  so  too. 

By  and  by  the  winter  came;  the  snow  fell  fast  and" the 
bitter  wind  blew  through  the  trees. 

Golden  Hair  crouched  down  inside  the  old  tree  on  the 
moss,  and  wept  with  the  cold. 

"What  a  pity  it  is  you  have  no  feathers!"  said  the 
robin. 

"Go  to  sleep,"  said  the  bee  drowsily;  "this  is  the  sort 
of  weather  for  a  good  nap." 

But  Golden  Hair  could  not  sleep  for  the  cold,  and 
wishing  would  not  give  her  feathers. 

By  and  by  the  robin  said  to  the  bee; 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

"Golden  Hair  ought  to  go  home  to  her  own  kind.  I 
have  had  some  crumbs  to-day  from  such  good  people;  I 
am  sure  if  they  knew  the  child  was  here,  they  would  help 
her." 

"But  how  can  we  let  them  know?"  said  the  bee. 
"You  see,  their  education  is  so  bad  that  they  know  noth- 
ing of  our  languages." 

"I  will  tell  the  dog,"  said  Robin;  "he  is  a  great  phi- 
losopher, and  can  settle  ways  and  means.  I  often  think 
he  is  much  wiser  than  his  master.  A  pheasant  told  me 
last  autumn  that  the  gentlemen  can  do  nothing  without 
him." 

"Do  speak  to  the  dog,"  said  the  bee.  "I  don't  like  to 
see  Golden  Hair  suffer,  and  do  nothing  for  her."  So  the 
robin  told  the  dog.  The  dog  said: 

"Show  me  where  the  child  is." 

And  Robin  did  so. 

And  the  dog  barked  and  fawned  on  the  little  child; 
and  Golden  Hair  was  pleased,  and  stroked  him,  and 
nestled  up  to  him  and  warmed  herself.  And  the  dog  lay 
close  beside  her,  and  warmed  her  with  his  breath. 

And  by  and  by  he  took  some  meat  from  his  master's 
plate,  and  brought  it  to  the  hungry  child. 

And  the  dog's  master  said  to  his  wife: 

"I  wonder  where  Tray  goes  every  day  with  a  piece  of 
meat?" 

And  his  wife  said: 

"Why  do  you  not  follow  him?" 

So  the  next  day  the  gentleman  went  after  his  dog,  and 
followed  him  through  the  wood  till  he  came  to  a  hollow 
tree. 

And  there,  inside  it,  very  pale,  and  cold,  and  miser- 
able, lay  a  little  child  with  golden  hair.  And  the  dog 
gave  her  the  meat,  while  a  solitary  bee  buzzed  faintly 
near,  and  a  robin  twittered  gratefully  from  a  twig, 

The  dog's  master  went  in  and  took  the  poor  babe  in 
his  arms,  and  spoke  to  her.  But  Golden  Hair  had  quite 
forgotten  her  own  language,  and  knew  only  the  dialects 
of  the  wood.  But  she  wept,  and  clasped  the  gentleman's 
arm  with  beseeching  hands. 

"Poor  deserted  babe!"  he  said,  embracing  her;  "Twill 
take  you  home,  and  you  shall  be  to  me  as  a  daughter." 

Aiicl  the  bee  buzzed  her  contentment;  and  the  robin. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  225 

sang  a  lay  of  rejoicing,  and  the  dog  barked  and  frisked 
as  if  he  were  wild  with  delight. 

So  Golden  Hair  was  taken  home  by  the  dog's  kind 
master.  And  he  gave  her  to  his  wife,  and  said: 

"I  have  found  a  wild  child  in  the  forest;  let  her  be  our 
own." 

And  the  lady  clasped  the  babe  in  her  arms,  and  loved 
her  from  that  day;  and  they  had  her  christened  "Mary." 
And  thus  it  happened  that  no  one  ever  knew  what  had 
become  of  Golden  Hair. 


THE   GOOD  LITTLE  MOUSE. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  lived  a  king  and  a  queen 
whose  mutual  affection  was  so  extreme  that  they  formed 
each  other's  sole  joy.  Their  sentiments  and  wishes  were 
always  in  perfect  unison;  sometimes  they  went  hunting 
the  hare  or  the  stag,  sometimes  fishing  for  sole  or  carp, 
but  always  together;  at  balls  they  were  always  partners; 
at  feasts  they  ate  of  the  same  dish,  roast  lamb  with  sugar- 
plums; they  frequently  went  to  the  theater  or  the  opera 
together;  they  sang  duets  and  played  a  score  of  merry 
tricks  for  their  mutual  diversion  at  home;  in  a  word, 
they  were  the  happiest  king  and  queen,  and  theirs  was 
the  happiest  court  on  record.  The  subjects  followed 
their  sovereigns'  example,  and  vied  with  each  other  in 
light-heartedness  and  good-humor.  For  all  these  reasons 
the  kingdom  was  called  Happy  Land. 

At  the  same  time  there  happened  to  be  in  a  neighbor- 
ing state  a  king  of  quite  an  opposite  character.  He  was 
the  declared  enemy  of  pleasure,  and  thought  the  more 
grief  the  better  sport;  his  looks  were  sullen,  his  eyes 
were  hollow,  his  beard  was  long  and  grizzly,  his  body  was 
thin,  his  complexion  sallow,  and  his  hair  black,  thick, 
and  as  rough  as  a  bear's.  This  ferocious  monarch  would 
amuse  himself  by  shooting  at  his  subjects;  he  was  him- 
self, the  executioner  of  criminals,  and  delighted  only  in 
cruel  and  wicked  deeds.  When  he  heard  of  a  kind 
mother  who  was  very  fond  of  a  good  little  boy  or  girl, 
he  summoned  them  to  his  presence,  Snd  either  strangled 
the  child,  or  broke  its  arms,  before  its  mother's  face. 
His  kingom  was  called  Tearland. 


226  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

This  wicked  king,  having  heard  of  the  happiness  of 
the  good  King  Felix,  became  so  jealous  of  his  neighbor's 
joy  that  he  resolved  to  raise  a  large  army  and  lay  waste 
his  dominions. 

When  everything  was  ready  the  bad  king,  Constantino, 
advanced  toward  Happy  Land.  The  news  of  his  coming 
was  not  long  in  reaching  the  ears  of  King  Felix;  he 
therefore  promptly  put  his  kingdom  in  a  state  of  defense. 
Queen  Felicia  was  in  an  agony  of  fear,  and  said  to  her 
husband,  with  tears  in  her  eyes: 

"Sire,  let  us  take  as  much  money  as  we  can  carry,  and 
fly  to  any  place  on  earth  from  the  threatened  danger." 

"For  shame,  madam!"  answered  Felix;  "my  duty  is  to 
protect  my  people,  and  it  bids  me  prefer  a  glorious  death 
to  a  life  of  shame." 

He  then  tenderly  kissed  his  queen,  and  having  assem- 
bled and  inspected  his  army,  mounted  a  noble  charger 
and  set  out  to  meet  the  enemy. 

Felicia,  left  alone,  gave  way  to  the  most  heartrending 
tears  and  lamentations;  and,  wringing  her  hands:  "Alas, 
alas!"  said  she,  "what  will  become  of  me  should  Felix  be 
slain  in  battle? — a  widow  and  a  captive;  the  wicked  king 
will  never  spare  me  in  his  wrath."  These  sorrowful 
thoughts  prevented  her  eating  and  sleeping.  The  king- 
wrote  to  her  daily  from  the  camp;  and  one  morning,  as 
she  was  anxiously  watching  the  arrival  of  the  courier, 
from  the  city  walls,  she  saw  him  approaching  the  city  at 
full  gallop.  She  hastened  to  meet  him,  fearful  of  some 
great  misfortune,  crying  out: 

"Ho!  courier,  ho!  courier,  what  news  do  you  bring?" 

"The  battle  is  lost,"  said  the  messenger,  "the  king  is 
killed,  and  the  wicked  Constantine  is  on  the  road  hither." 

The  poor  queen  fainted  away  and  was  carried  to  bed 
insensible,  where  all  her  ladies  in  tears  surrounded  her, 
some  mourning  for  the  loss  of  a  father,  others  for  sons  or 
brothers;  there  was  weeping  and  wailing  and  tearing  of 
hair. 

Soon  the  bad  king  was  heard  approaching.  Heading 
his  unprincipled  subjects,  he  entered  the  city,  sword  in 
hand,  and  slew  without  mercy  all  whom  he  encountered. 
The  inhabitants  fled  before  him  with  loud  cries,  and  all 
who  escaped  took  refuge  in  the  country.  With  his  sword 
still  reeking,  the  king  entered  the  palace  and  ascended 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  227 

to  the  queen's  apartment.  When  she  beheld  him  in  the 
room  she  buried  herself  under  the  bedclothes,  terrified 
to  the  last  degree.  He  strode  up  to  the  bed,  pulled  off 
the  clothes,  tore  the  queen's  cap  from  her  head,  and 
scattered  her  long  ringlets  over  her  shoulders;  then, 
gathering  them  in  his  hand,  he  dragged  her  three  times 
round  the  room,  and  threw  her  over  his  shoulders  as  if 
she  had  been  a  sack  of  corn,  and  in  this  manner  carried 
her  off.  Felicia  entreated  him  for  mercy,  but  in  vain: 
he  only  laughed  at  her  supplications. 

The  king  carried  Felicia  to  his  own  country,  swearing 
all  the  way  that  he  was  determined  to  hang  her;  but,  on 
second  thoughts,  he  determined  to  spare  her  life  for  the 

S  resent,  and  if  she  had  a  daughter  to  marry  the  latter  to 
is  son.  Anxious  to  know  if  she  would  have  a  daughter, 
he  sent  for  a  fairy  who  lived  at  no  great  distance  from 
his  palace.  When  she  arrived  he  entertained  the  fairy 
better  than  was  his  usual  custom,  and  conducted  her  to 
the  tower,  in  the  upper  part  of  which,  in  a  small  and  mis- 
erably furnished  garret,  the  poor  queen  was  confined. 
There  was  no  bed,  but  a  wretched,  worn-out  old  mattress 
only,  not  worth  twopence,  on  which  the  desolate  Felicia 
sat  and  wept  day  and  night. 

When  the  fairy  saw  her  her  heart  melted  with  pity; 
she  courtesied  to  the  queen  and  whispered  in  her  ear  as 
she  embraced  her:  "Do  not  despair,  madam,  your  mis- 
fortunes will  not  last  forever,  and  I  hope  to  contribute 
to  their  speedy  termination." 

Queen  Felicia,  somewhat  comforted  by  these  words, 
returned  the  fairy's  embrace,  and  begged  her  to  take  pity 
on  a  poor  princess  who  had  never  disgnedly  injured  any 
one,  but  had  always  endeavored  to  do  all  the  good  in  her 
power.  They  were  conversing  together  when  the  wicked 
king  interrupted  them  with: 

"Come,  not  so  many  compliments;  I  brought  you 
hither  to  tell  me  whether  this  slave  will  have  a  son  or  a 
daughter." 

The  fairy  answered:  "She  will  have  a  daughter,  who 
will  be  the  fairest  and  most  charming  princess  ever 
seen."  With  that  the  fairy  endowed  the  princess  yet  to 
be  born  with  innumerable  virtues  and  accomplishments. 

"If  she  prove  not  fair  and  amiable,"  said  the  wicked 
king,  "I  will  tie  her  to  her  mother's  neck  and  hang  them 


228  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

to  the  branch  of  a  tree,  nor  shall  tears  or  entreaties 
induce  me  to  relent." 

He  then  quitted  the  garret,  accompanied  by  the  fairy, 
without  bestowing  a  look  upon  the  good  queen,  who  was 
weeping  bitterly  and  saying  to  herself:  "Alas!  what  will 
become  of  me?  Should  I  have  a  pretty  little  daughter, 
he  will  give  her  to  his  monster  son;  should  she  be  ugly, 
he  will  hang  us  both.  To  what  a  miserable  extremity 
am  I  reduced!" 

She  had  no  friend  to  whom  she  could  confide  her 
trouble,  or  who  might  console  her.  Her  jailer  gave  her 
daily  three  parched  peas  only,  with  a  small  allowance  of 
water,  and  sometimes  a  very  small  piece  of  black  bread. 
She  soon  therefore  became  thinner  than  a  herring,  and 
reduced  to  mere  skin  and  bone. 

As  she  was  spinning  one  evening  (for  the  wicked  king, 
who  was  very  covetous,  made  her  work  day  and  night), 
she  saw  a  very  pretty  little  mouse  creep  through  a  hole 
into  her  room.  "Alas!  m^  darling,"  said  the  wretched 
Felicia,  "there  is  nothing  here  for  you!  three  peas  a  day 
are  my  allowance;  so  if  you  would  not  fast,  go  elsewhere 
for  food."  The  little  mouse  ran  to  and  fro,  dancing  and 
skipping  so  gayly  that  the  queen  took  much  pleasure  in 
watching  its  antics,  and  was  induced  to  give  it  the  only 
pea  she  had  left  for  her  supper.  "Here,  pretty  one," 
she  said,  "eat  this,  it  is  all  I  have  to  offer  you,  but  I  give 
it  willingly."  The  words  had  scarcely  passed  her  lips 
when  c*ie  saw  on  her  table  a  fine  plump  partridge,  admi- 
rably dressed  with  bread  sauce,  and  two  boxes  of  bonbons. 
"In  truth,"  said  Felicia,  "a  kind  action  always  brings  its 
reward." 

With  that  she  ate  a  little,  but  having  fasted  so  long  she 
was  almost  past  eating.  She  threw  a  sweetmeat  to  the 
mouse,  who  soon  began  to  nibble  it,  and,  when  he  had 
done  his  supper,  danced  still  more  prettily  than  before. 

The  next  morning,  when  the  jailer  brought  the  queen's 
three  peas,  which  he  carried  iii  on  a  large  dish  with  a 
cover,  by  way  of  ridicule,  the  little  mouse  crept  softly,  to 
the  dish  and  munched  them  all  three,  together  with 
the  morsel  of  bread.  When  it  was  dinner-time,  and  the 
queen  found  the  dish  empty,  she  was  somewhat  angry 
with  the  mouse.  "The  greedy  little  creatrue!"  said  the 
hungry  Felicia;  "if  it  serve  me  so  to-inorrow  I  shall  pine 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


229 


to  death."     She  was  about  to  put  the  cover  over  the  empty 
dish  when  she  found  all  kinds  of  nice  things  in  it,  and, 


rejoicing  at  this  unexpected  discovery,  quickly  began  to 
eat;  but  while  she  was  eating  it  came  into  her  mind  that 


230  OLD,  OLD  FAIttT  TALES. 

the  wicked  king  would  perhaps  in  a  few  days  put  her  and 
her  child  to  death,  and  she  ceased  eating  to  indulge  her 
tears;  then,  raising  her  eyes  to  heaven,  she  exclaimed: 
"What!  and  is  there  no  means  of  escape?''  As  she 
spoke  she  observed  her  little  friend  playing  with  two  or 
three  long  straws:  Felicia  took  them  from  the  mouse  and 
began  to  plait  them.  "If  I  had  but  enough,"  said  she, 
"I  would  make  a  covered  basket  large  enough  to  hold  my 
little  daughter,  and  give  her  through  the  window  to  the 
first  charitable  person  who  would  take  charge  of  her." 

She  set  to  work  with  a  good  heart,  while  the  good 
little  mouse  took  care  that  she  did  not  want  for  straw, 
continuing  to  drag  it  into  the  garret  as  fast  as  Felicia 
could  use  it,  and  dancing  and  skipping  for  her  amuse- 
ment. At  meal-times  the  queen  gave  her  three  peas  to 
the  mouse,  and  received  in  exchange  a  good  supply  of 
delicious  food.  Felicia  was  extremely  puzzled  to  imagine 
who  it  could  be  that  sent  her  so  many  nice  things.  As 
she  was  one  day  looking  out  of  the  window  to  try  the 
length  of  her  straw  plait,  she  observed  at  the  foot  of  the 
tower  a  good  little  woman  leaning  on  a  staff,  who, 
directly  she  saw  the  queen's  face,  said  to  her: 

"I  am  acquainted  with  your  grief,  madam,  and  am  will- 
ing to  assist  you." 

"Alas!  my  dear  friend,"  answered  the  queen,  "you 
will  do  me  a  great  favor:  come  every  evening  under  my 
window,  and  when  my  child  is  born  I  will  lower  the  dear 
baby  to  you;  nurse  it,  and  bring  it  up  for  me,  and  when 
I  am  able  I  will  amply  reward  you." 

"I  am  not  covetous,"  answered  the  old  woman,  "but 
am  somewhat  dainty,  and  there  is  nothing  pleases  my 
palate  better  than  a  nice,  fat,  plump  mouse.  If  you  can 
catch  any  such  in  your  garret  kill  them  and  throw  them 
to  me;  1  am  not  ungrateful,  and  your  infant  will  fare  all 
the  better  for  your  kindness." 

When  Queen  Felicia  heard  this  speech  she  began  to 
cry,  and  the  old  woman,  after  waiting  her  answer  for  a 
few  minutes,  asked  her  the  cause  of  her  tears.  "I  grieve," 
said  the  poor  queen,  "because  there  is  only  one  mouse 
which  comes  into  my  chamber,  and  it  is  so  pretty  and  so 
good  that  I  cannot  put  it  to  death." 

"What!"  answered  the  old  woman  in  a  passion,  "could 
you  sacrifice  your  child  for  love  of  a  little  rogue  of  a 


OLD,  OLD  FAIHY  TALES.  231 

mouse,  who  nibbles  all  that  falls  in  his  way?  Very  well* 
madam,  please  yourself,  and  I  wish  you  much  joy  with 
your  companion;  I  shall  not  want  for  mice  without  your 
assistance/'  With  that  the  old  woman  went  her  way, 
grumbling  and  muttering  between  her  teeth. 

Although  the  queen  had  a  nice  meal  on  her  table,  and 
although  the  good  little  mouse  came  as  usual  to  skip  and 
dance  for  her  amusement,  she  kept  her  eyes  riveted  on 
the  floor,  her  heart  beating  violently,  while  tears  coursed 
each  other  down  her  cheeks.  .  * 

That  very  night  she  became  the  mother  of  a  little  girl, 
a  miracle  of  beauty,  which,  instead  of  crying,  like  other 
children,  smiled  in  her  face,  holding  on t^ her  tiny  hands 
as  if  she  had  been  very  rational.  The  queen  caressed 
and  kissed  the  little  stranger  very  tenderly,  saying  to 
herself:  "Alas!  my  poor  little  darling,  if  you  fall  into 
the  wicked  king's  clutches,  it  will  be  all  up  with  you." 
She  then  placed  her  gently  in  the  basket,  and  pinned  to 
her  clothes  a  scrap  of  paper,  on  which  was  written:  "This 
unfortunate  little  girl's  name  is  Amietta."  In  a  minute 
or  two  she  opened  the  basket  again,  and  thought  her  in- 
fant looked  prettier  than  ever;  she  kissed  her  again  and 
burst  into  tears. 

At  this  moment  the  good  little  mouse  skipped  into  the 
room,  and  crept  into  the  basket  with  Amietta.  "Ah! 
little  creature,"  said  Felicia,  "how  dearly  have  I  pur- 
chased your  life!  Perhaps  I  shall  lose  my  dear  Amietta! 
Who  but  I  would  have  scrupled  to  kill  you  for  the  dainty 
old  woman's  dinner?  Well!  I  could  not  find  it  in  my 
heart  to  do  so  cruel  a  deed." 

The  good  little  mouse  answered  the  queen  in  these 
words:  "Do  not  regret  your  kindness,  madam;  I  am  not 
quite  so  unworthy  of  it  as  you  may  imagine." 

Fear  and  astonishment  struggled  in  the  queen's  breast 
when  she  heard  the  little  mouse  speak;  and  her  fear  not 
a  little  increased  when  she  observed  its  little  snout  take 
the  form  of  a  face,  its  little  paws  become  hands  and  feet, 
and  all  at  once  its  whole  body  increase  in  size.  At  last 
the  queen  recognized  in  the  now  entirely  metamorphosed 
mouse,  the  fairy  who  had  visited  her  in  company  with 
the  wicked  king,  and  who  had  manifested  so  much  affec- 
tion for  her. 

The  fairy  spoke:  "I  have  tried  your  heart,  and  I  find 


232  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

that  it  is  good  and  generous.  We  fairies,  although  pos- 
sessed of  wealth  and  power,  seek,  as  the  greatest  treasure 
upon  earth,  true  friendship,  and  rarely  do  we  find  it." 

"Is  it  possible,  fair  lady/'  said  the  queen,  embracing 
her,  "that  you,  rich  and  powerful  as  you  are,  have  any 
difficulty  to  find  friends?" 

"Yes,"  answered  the  fairy;  "we  are  loved  but  for  in- 
terest, and  that  is  not  the  kind  of  love  we  care  for,  but 
•when  loved  as  you  loved  me,  as  a  little  mouse,  no  service 
is  too  great  to  show  our  affection.  Anxious  to  put  your 
goodness  to  the  test,  I  assumed  the  figure  of  an  old 
woman,  and  accosted  you  from  the  foot  of  the  tower:  you 
know  that  your  heart  was  proof  against  the  trial." 
Thereupon  the  fairy  embraced  the  queen,  and  having 
tenderly  kissed  the  little  princess  three  times,  she  said: 
"I  endow  you,  sweet  child,  to  be  the  comfort  of  your 
mother,  and  richer  than  your  father;  to  reach  the  age  of 
one  hundred  years,  with  undiminished  beauty,  free  from 
illness,  wrinkles,  or  other  apprearance  of  age." 

The  queen  in  raptures  thanked  the  beneficent  fairy, 
and  entreated  her  to  remove  Amietta  from  the  prison, 
and  take  care  of  her;  adding  that  she  gave  her  child 
freely  to  be  the  fairy's  daughter. 

The  fairy  accepted  the  present  and  thanked  Queen 
Felicia;  she  placed  the  baby  gently  in  the  basket,  and 
lowered  it  through  the  window;  but,  having  waited  a 
few  moments  to  resume  the  shape  of  the  little  mouse, 
when  she  descended  by  the  straw  plait,  the  baby  was  no 
longer  there.  She  returned  hastily  to  the  queen:  "All 
is  lost,"  she  said,  "my  enemy  Caucaline  has  just  carried 
off  the  princess!  you  must  know  she  is  a  cruel  fairy  who 
mortally  hates  me,  and,  being  unfortunately  my  senior, 
is  more  powerful  than  myself.  I  know  not  how  I  can 
contrive  to  withdraw  Amietta  from  her  vile  clutches." 

When  the  queen  heard  this  sad  intelligence  her  grief 
was  excessive:  weeping  very  bitterly,  she  conjured  her 
kind  friend  to  endeavor  to  recover  her  darling  Amietta 
at  all  hazards. 

Meanwhile  the  jailer,  coming  to  pay  his  daily  visit  to 
the  queen,  knew  that  she  had  become  a  mother,  and 
hastened  to  inform  the  wicked  king,  who  went  straight- 
way to  demand  the  child.  Felicia  said  that  a  fairy, 
whoso  name  she  did  not  know,  had  taken  it  from  her  by 


The  king  stamped  his  foot  in  a  rage.     "  I  promised  to  hang  you,"  said  he,  "  nor 
will  I  delay  to  keep  my  word.11— Page  5233.  Old,  Old  Fairy  Tales. 


v 


!  :     ';  .-'• 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  233 

force.  On  hearing  this,  the  wicked  king  stamped  his 
feet  and  gnawed  his  very  finger-nails  with  rage.  "I 
promised,"  said  he,  "to  hang  yon,  nor  will  I  delay  to 
keep  my  word."  With  that  he  seized  the  poor  queen  by 
the  hair  of  her  head,  dragged  her  into  a  wood,  climbed  a 
tall  tree,  and  was  on  the  point  of  hanging  her,  when  the 
fairy,  having  rendered  herself  invisible,  came  close  beside 
him,  and  pushed  him  down  to  the  ground,  dislocating 
his  nose,  and  breaking  four  teeth  in  the  fall.  The  fairy 
then  hastened  away  with  the  queen  in  her  flying  chariot, 
and  conducted  her  to  a  noble  castle,  where  Felicia  was 
carefully  nursed,  and,  but  for  the  loss  of  her  little  Ami- 
etta,  would  have  been  completely  happy. 

Time  slipped  away,  and  the  queen's  excessive  affliction 
gradually  diminished.  Fifteen  years  had  passed  since  the 
birth  of  her  daughter,  when  she  heard  that  the  wicked 
king's  son  had  offered  his  hand  to  a  young  girl  who  kept 
his  father's  turkeys,  but  that  she  had  refused  him.  It 
was  not  a  little  surprising  that  a  turkey-keeper  should 
refuse  to  become  a  princess,  with  a  reasonable  prospect 
of  being  one  day  queen.  The  nuptial  dresses  too  were 
prepared,  and  it  was  to  have  been  so  gay  a  wedding  that 
guests  had  come  to  witness  it  from  three  hundred  miles 
round.  The  good  little  mouse  was  among  these  guests; 
and  wishing  to  see  the  turkey-keeper  at  her  ease,  paid  her 
a  visit  in  the  poultry-yard.  She  found  the  turkey -keeper 
seated  on  a  large  stone  dressed  in  a  coarse  stuff  petticoat, 
with  neither  shoe  nor  stocking  on  her  feet.  Dresses  of 
gold  and  silver  brocade,  trimmed  with  diamonds,  pearls, 
ribbons  and  the  finest  lace,  were  lying  near  her,  trodden 
under  the  turkeys'  feet,  covered  with  dirt  and  completely 
spoiled.  Presently  the  wicked  king's  son,  who  was  lame, 
humpbacked,  and  blind  of  one  eye,  approached  her,  and 
said  rudely:  "If  you  still  refuse  to  have  me,  I  will  be  the 
death  of  you." 

The  turkey-keeper  answered  haughtily:  "I  can  never 
love,  nor  consent  to  marry  you;  you  are  too  ugly,  and 
too  much  like  your  cruel  father.  Leave  me  in  peace 
with  my  turkeys;  I  love  them  better  than  all  your  finery. " 

The  good  little  mouse  gazed  on  her  with  admiration, 
for  she  was  as  beautiful  as  the  moon..  When  the  wicked 
king's  son  was  out  of  sight  the  fairy  assumed  the  figure 
of  an  old  shepherdess,  and,  accosting  the  rustic  beauty, 
said: 


234  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

"Good-morrow,  daughter;  you  have  a  fine  flock  of  fat 
turkeys  here." 

The  young  turkey-keeper  smiled  sweetly  on  the  old 
dame,  and  said:  "They  are  trying  to  persuade  me  to 
abandon  them  for  a  weary  crown;  pray  assist  me  with  your 
advice." 

"Daughter,"  said  the  fairy,  "a  crown  is  not  to  be 
despised;  you  neither  know  its  value  nor  importance." 

"So  well  do  I  know  both  the  one  and  the  other,"  an- 
swered the  turkey-keeper  promptly,  "that  I  am  resolved 
never  to  share  one  with  an  unworthy  person;  yet  I  do 
not  know  who  I  am,  nor  who  are  my  father  and  mother: 
I  have  neither  relations  nor  friends." 

"You  have  beauty  and  virtue,  my  child, "said  the  wise 
fairy,  "which  are  more  valuable  than  ten  kingdoms:  tell 
me,  I  entreat  you,  who  placed  you  here,  since  you  have 
neither  father,  mother,  relations,  nor  friends." 

"A  fairy,"  answered  the  fair  turkey -feeder,  "named 
Caucaline,  is  the  cause  of  my  being  in  this  place:  she 
brought  me  up  from  infancy,  but  treated  me  so  cruelly 
that  one  day  I  resolved  to  escape  from  her  house,  and, 
after  wandering  for  some  time,  was  resting  in  a  wood, 
when  the  wicked  king's  son  happened  to  pass  that  way. 
He  saw  me,  and  asked  if  I  would  take  care  of  his 
poultry:  I  accepted  his  offer,  and  his  turkeys  were  im- 
mediately placed  under  my  charge.  He  came  from  time 
to  time  to  see  how  they  thrived,  and  of  course  saw  me 
also;  when,  alas!  without  the  slightest  desire  on  my  part 
for  the  honor,  he  fell  so  desperately  in  love  that  I  am 
teased  out  of  my  life  by  his  importunities." 

"JVhen  the  fairy  had  heard  this  artless  tale  she  began 
to  think  that  the  turkey-keeper  must  be  the  Princess 
Amietta.  "What  is  your  name,  my  dear?"  said  she. 

"I  am  called  Amietta,"  answered  the  rustic. 

On  hearing  this,  the  fairy  could  no  longer  doubt  the 
truth  of  her  surmises;  so,  throwing  her  arm  round  the 
princess'  neck,  she  almost  devoured  her  with  caresses, 
and  said:  "Amietta,  1  have  known  you  from  your  birth, 
and  am  very  glad  to  find  you  so  pretty  and  so  prudent; 
but  I  should  like  to  see  you  better  dressed,  as  your  pres- 
ent appearance  is  anything  but  favorable;  let  me  see  how 
you  look  in  these  fine  clothes." 

Amietta,  who  was  very  obedient,  immediately  com- 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  235 

pliad  with  the  fairy's  request:  she  uncovered  her  head, 
when  immediately  her  long  hair,  which  was  finer  than 
gossamer,  and  of  the  most  delicate  auburn,  fell  to  the 
ground  in  graceful  curls;  then,  taking  in  the  palms  of 
her  delicate  hands  some  water  from  a  clear  stream  that  ran 
near  the  hen-house,  she  bathed  her  face,  when  her  com- 
plexion became  clear  as  oriental  pearl.  Eoses  seemed  to 
blow  upon  her  cheeks  and  carnations  on  her  lips;  her 
mild  breath  was  as  sweet  as  the  honeysuckle  or  wild 
thyme,  her  form  was  graceful  as  the  fawn's,  while  the 
whiteness  of  her  bosom  surpassed  that  of  drifted  snow, 
or  the  lily  of  the  valley. 

When  she  was  dressed  the  fairy  declared  her  a  miracle 
of  beauty,  and  said:  "Who  now  do  you  think  you  are, 
my  dear  Amietta?" 

"In  truth,"  answered  the  princess,  "I  cannot  help 
fancying  myself  the  daughter  of  some  great  king." 

"Should  you  be  very  glad  if  it  were  so?"  asked  the 
fairy. 

"Yes,  my  dear  madam,"  answered  Amietta,  courtesy- 
ing,  "I  should  be  very,  very  glad." 

"Very  well,"  said  the  fairy,  "be  happy  then;  I  will 
tell  you  more  to-morrow." 

Thereupon  the  fairy  departed,  and  returned  in  all  dili- 
gence to  her  fine  castle,  where  Queen  Felicia  was  em- 
ployed spinning  silk.  "Will  it  please  your  majesty," 
cried  the  good  little  mouse,  "to  wager  your  spindle  and 
your  distaff,  that  I  do  not  bring  you  the  best  news  you 
ever  heard?" 

"Alas!"  answered  the  queen,  "since  the  death  of  King 
Felix,  and  the  loss  of  my  darling  Amietta,  all  the  news  in 
this  world  is  nothing  to  me." 

"A  truce  to  your  sorrow,"  said  the  fairy;  "the  prin- 
cess, whom  I  have  just  seen,  is  quite  well,  arid  so  exceed- 
ingly beautiful  that  it  will  be  her  own  fault  if  she  do  not 
become  a  queen." 

The  good  fairy  then  related  all  she  had  learned,  and 
the  queen  shed  tears  of  joy  to  hear  that  her  daughter 
was  still  alive  and  so  beautiful,  but  was  overwhelmed  with 
sorrow  to  learn  that  she  was  a  turkey-keeper. 

"When  my  dear  husband  and  myself  were  a  powerful 
king  and  queen,  and  in  the  height  of  onr  prosperity,  we 
little  thought  a  child  of  ours  would  ever  be  a  turkey- 
keeper!*" 


236  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

"Never  mind,"  said  the  fairy,  "it  is  a  trick  of  the 
wicked  Caucaline,  who,  aware  of  my  affection  for  you, 
has  reduced  Amietta  to  this  condition;  but  I  will  be  equal 
with  my  rival  yet,  and  will  either  restore  the  princess  to 
her  proper  rank,  or  burn  my  books." 

"I  have  no  ambition  to  see  my  child  married  to  the 
wicked  king's  son, '"said  the  queen;  "so  do  not  delay  to 
bring  her  hither." 

In  the  meantime  the  wicked  king's  son,  repulsed  by 
Amietta  in  the  presence  of  the  good  little  mouse,  was 
very  much  enraged  against  her;  and  seating  himself 
under  the  palace  wall,  he  began  to  cry  so  loudly  that  the 
wicked  king  overheard  him.  Throwing  up  the  window, 
and  putting  out  his  head:  "What  is  the  matter?  What 
are  you  making  all  this  noise  about?"  said  he. 

"Our  turkey-keeper  loves  me  not,"  answered  the  son. 

"How!  loves  you  not?"  said  the  wicked  king;  "but  I 
say  she  shall  love  you."  With  that  he  called  his  guards, 
and  gave  orders  for  them  to  bring  the  turkey-keeper  to 
his  presence,  adding  that  he  would  make  her  bitterly 
repent  her  obstinacy  in  refusing  to  love  his  handsome 
son. 

The  guards,  in  obedience  to  the  orders  they  had  re- 
ceived, went  immediately  to  the  turkey-yard,  when  they 
found  Amietta  attired  in  a  superb  robe  of  white  satin, 
embroidered  with  diamonds  and  rubies,  and  tastefully 
trimmed  with  ribbon.  Never  in  their  lives  had  they  seea 
so  noble  looking  and  beautiful  a  lady;,  and  believing  her 
to  be  a  princess,  they  were  afraid  to  speak.  "Pray  tell 
me  whom  you  seek?"  said  Amietta,  in  a  very  sweet  and 
amiable  voice. 

"Madam,"  they  answered,  "we  come,  by  the  king's 
orders,  in  search  of  a  wretched  young  woman  named 
Amietta." 

"Alas!"  answered  the  princess,  "that  is  my  name; 
what  would  you  with  me?" 

They  dared  not  hesitate  to  seize  her;  so,  binding  her 
hands  and  feet  with  strong  cords,  they  dragged  her  be- 
fore the  wicked  king- and  his  son.  When  the  king  Baw 
how  very  beautiful  she  was,  in  spite  of  himself  he  was  a 
little  moved;  indeed,  she  must  have  excited  the  kindest 
feelings  in  his  bosom  if  he  had  not  been  the  most  wicked 
person  in  the  world.  When  he  had  surveyed  her  from 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  23? 

head  to  foot  he  said:  "So,  madam!  I  hear  that  you  will 
not  consent  to  marry  my  son.  He  is  a  hundred  times  too 
good  for  you;  and,  fine  as  you  think  yourself,  one  of  his 
looks  is  worth  more  than  all  your  charms.  Come,  marry 
him  immediately,  or  I  will  have  you  flayed  alive." 

The  princess,  trembling  like  a  dove  in  the  net  of  the 
fowler,  threw  herself  at  his  feet,  and  embracing  his  knees, 
said:  "Sire,  I  conjure  you  to  have  pity  on  me;  to  in  jure  an 
unprotected  girl  would  be  unworthy  of  your  royal  dig- 
nity. Give  me  a  day  or  two  to  reflect,  and  I  will  then  no 
longer  oppose  your  wishes." 

The  son,  furious  at  her  not  consenting  on  the  spot, 
would  have  had  her  flayed  at  once;  but  the  king  finally 
resolved  to  placed  her  in  confinement,  and  she  was  con- 
ducted to  a  high  tower,  where  she  was  deprived  of  the 
light  of  the  sun. 

At  this  crisis  the  good  fairy  and  the  queen  arrived  in 
the  flying  chariot,  and  soon  learned  all  that  had  taken 
place.  The  queen  began  to  weep  bitterly,  saying  that 
her  misfortunes  were  interminable,  but  that  she  would 
rather  see  her  daughter  dead  than  married  to  the  wicked 
king's  son.  "Be  of  good  cheer,"  said  the  fairy,  "I  am 
about  so  to  annoy  them  that  you  shall  be  amply  avenged. " 

When  the  wicked  king  went  to  bed  the  beneficent 
fairy,  having  assumed  the  shape  of  a  mouse,  concealed 
herself  under  the  bolster  of  his  bed,  and  just  as  he  was 
falling  asleep  crept  out  and  gnawed  his  ear.  Muttering 
an  oath,  he  turned  round  in  bed,  when  the  little  mouse 
gnawed  his  other  ear.  The  king  flew  into  a  passion,  and 
called  aloud  for  help.  The  attendants  entered  the  room, 
and  found  the  king  with  both  his  ears  so  severely  bitten, 
and  bleeding  so  fast  that  all  their  efforts  to  stanch  the 
wounds  were  unavailing.  While  a  diligent  search  was 
making  for  the  mouse  she  paid  the  wicked  king's  son  a 
visit,  and  served  him  in  the  same  manner.  He  was  soon 
heard  bawling  for  assistance,  and  when  the  servants  came 
into  his  apartment  they  beheld  him  with  his  ears  nearly 
skinned.  The  surgeon  was  sent  for,  and  the  good  little 
mouse  returned  to  the  wicked  king's  bedchamber,  when 
she  found  the  king  again  dozing  off  to  sleep.  She  now 
crept  up  to  his  nose,  and  began  to»  nibble  with  all  her 
might,  and  when  the  king  covered  that  with  his  hands, 
she  applied  herself  industriously  to  bite  and  scratch  them 


£38  OLD,  OLD  FAIRT  TALES. 

also.  "Help,  help,"  cried  the  king,  "I  am  suffering 
martyrdom!"  And  while  he  was  shouting  the  little 
mouse  crept  into  his  mouth,  and  nibbled  his  tongue,  lips, 
and  cheeks.  The  attendants  rushed  into  the  room,  and 
found  the  king  looking  ghastly,  and  almost  speechless, 
from  the  effects  of  the  mouse's  little  teeth  on  his  tongue. 
All  he  could  do  was  to  make  signs  that  a  mouse  was  the 
author  of  this  new  mischief,  when  the  mattress,  the 
bolster,  and  every  hole  and  corner  of  the  room  were 
again  searched  in  vain,  for  the  mouse  was  off,  a  second 
time,  to  the  son,  whom  she  completely  blinded,  for  she 
gnawed  his  remaining  eye  (he  was  already  blind  of  one). 
In  a  transport  of  fury,  with  his  drawn  sword  in  his  hand, 
he  blundered  into  his  father's  room,  whom  he  found  storm- 
ing and  swearing  that  he  would  destroy  everything  an 
inch  high,  and  an  hour  old,  if  the  mouse  were  not  found. 

When  the  king  saw  his  son  he  stormed  also  at  him;  and 
the  latter,  whose  ears  were  bound  up,  not  recognizing  his 
father's  voice,  immediately  attacked  him.  The  wicked 
king,  amazed,  thrust  his  sword  through  the  body  of  his 
son,  and  stumbled  in  his  eagerness  on  his  adversary's 
weapon,  which  impaled  him,  and  thus  father  and  son 
rolled  on  the  floor  dead  at  each  other's  hands.  Their 
subjects,  who  hated  them  mortally,  and  only  obeyed  them 
out  of  fear,  no  longer  dreading  their  anger,  tied  cords  to 
their  feet  and  dragged  them  into  the  river,  saying  that 
they  were  very  glad  to  be  rid  of  them  so  easily. 

Thus  died  the  wicked  King  of  Tearland,  and  his 
equally  wicked  son.  The  beneficent  fairy  hastened  to 
inform  the  queen  of  the  event,  and  .they  went  together  to 
the  black  tower,  in  which  Amietta  was  confined  under 
more  than  forty  locks.  The  fairy  struck  the  outer  door 
three  times  with  her  little  nut-tree  wand,  when  it  im- 
mediately flew  open,  as  did  all  the  others,  and  they  found 
the  poor  princess  in  the  deepest  affliction.  Throwing 
herself  on  her  daughter's  neck:  "My  long-lost  darling," 
said  the  queen,  "I  am  your  unfortunate  mother,  Queen 
Felicia."  Thereupon  she  communicated  to  the  princess 
every  particular  of  her  history,  at  which  Amietta  was  so 
transported  with  joy  that  it  almost  cost  her  her  life. 
She  threw  herself  at  the  queen's  feet,  embraced  them, 
bathed  them  with  her  tears,  and  kissed  them  again  and 
again.  She  then  tenderly  embraced  the  fairy,  who  had 


\Vf\ 

•  •   »     *  .  •  '* 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  239 

brought  her  baskets  full  of  jewels  of  enormous  value,  with 
gold,  diamonds,  bracelets,  pearls,  and  the  portrait  of 
King  Felix,  set  in  jewels,  which  she  held  up  for  her  in- 
spection. "But  we  have  no  time  to  lose,"  said  she; 
"now  is  the  time  for  a  master-stroke;  let  us  go  to  the 
large  hall  of  the  palace,  and  harangue  the  people. " 

The  fairy  led  the  way,  with  a  very  sedate  and  serious 
countenance,  wearing  a  robe  with  a  train  more  than  six 
ells  long;  the  queen's  dress  was  of  blue  velvet,  covered 
with  gold  embroidery,  and  had  a  still  longer  train.  In 
order  to  make  this  display,  they  had  brought  their  rich- 
est suits  with  them;  they  wore,  likewise,  crowns  on  their 
heads,  which  sparkled  like  so  many  suns.  The  Princess 
Amietta  followed  her  mother,  looking  as  modest  as  Diana, 
and  as  beautiful  as  Venus.  They  courtesied  to  all  whom 
they  met,  gentle  or  simple.  A  crowd  soon  collected 
about  them,  anxious  to  learn  who  these  fair  and  noble- 
looking  ladies  could  be.  They  entered  the  large  hall  in 
which  the  court  was  usually  held,  and  when  it  was  as  full 
as  it  could  hold  the  beneficent  fairy  told  the  people  that 
she  proposed  to  give  them  for  their  queen  the  daughter 
of  King  Felix  of  Happy  Land,  whom  she  then  introduced 
to  their  notice;  adding,  that  they  would  certainly  be  con- 
tented with  her  government,  and  that  if  they  accepted 
her  for  their  sovereign,  she,  the  fairy,  would  find  Ami- 
etta a  husband  as  perfect  as  herself,  and  would  restore 
cheerfulness  to  the  kingdom,  and  forever  banish  melan- 
choly from  their  hearts.  When  these  words  were  heard 
loud  shouts  of  "Long  live  Amietta,  Queen  of  Tearland, 
now  Happy  Land!"  resounded  from  the  multitude,  and 
almost  split  the  roof.  At  the  same  moment  a  hundred 
different  musical  instruments  struck  up  a  lively  waltz, 
and  the  people  joined  hands  and  began  to  dance  round 
the  queen,  her  daughter,  and  the  benignant  fairy,  sing- 
ing with  one  voice: 

All  hail  to  our  queen,  who  brings  brightness  and  joy 
To  the  hearts  of  a  people  by  care  long  oppressed! 

Iiong,  long  may  she  live;  while  each  thought  we  employ, 
To  render  her  happy  by  whom  we  are  blessed. 

A  wiser  or  better  earth  never  has  seen; 

Then,  live  Amietta;  long,  long  live  the  queen. 

Thus  kindly  were  they  welcomed;  and  never  until  the 
time  in  which  we  live  was  there  a  queen  more  beloved. 


240 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


At  her  coronation,  which,  as  may  be  expected,  was 
magnificent  in  the  extreme,  tables  were  spread  in  the 


r^_-  "  r-'--  V ':---  -'--•  ---  •----'-;    -^^^-^r*=^r        ~=~ 


park,  collations  were  served,  all  present  ate,  drank,  and 
were  merry,  and  then  retired  to  rest,  blessing  their 
youthful  queen.  Shortly  afterward  the  fairy  presented 
to  the  gentle  Amietta  the  most  handsome  prince  that 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  241 

eyes  ever  looked  upon,  and  what  is  more,  as  good  as  he 
was  handsome.  The  fairy,  who  had  to  seek  such  a  paragon 
of  a  husband  in  a  very  remote  kingdom,  brought  him  in 
her  flying  chariot;  and  so  well  were  they  matched  that, 
directly  they  met,  they  conceived  the  most  tender  and 
lasting  attachment  for  each  other.  Magnificent  prepara- 
tions were  made  for  the  wedding,  and  the  ceremony  was 
performed  with  the  utmost  splendor,  and  followed  by 
rejoicings,  which  lasted  six  months,  throughout  the  king- 
dom. 


SEPTIMUS. 

THERE  was  once  upon  a  time  a  king  and  queen,  who 
had  a  very  small  kingdom  to  govern.  The  king  was 
named  Petard;  he  was  a  very  good  man,  rather  blunt,  of 
a  weak  and  limited. mind;  but  otherwise  the  best  king  in 
the  world.  His  subjects  were  nearly  as  much  masters 
of  his  kingdom  as  himself,  for  on  the  most  unimportant 
occasions  they  gave  their  advice  rather  loudly  and  with- 
out its  being  asked  for;  and  each  of  them  wished  his 
notions  on  government  to  be  noticed  and  followed. 

The  queen  was  called  Gilletta;  she  had  no  larger  share 
of  talents  than  her  husband,  but  still  her  character  was 
mild,  timid  and  inoffensive,  which  caused  her  to  speak 
little,  and  often  by  .sentences  only;  she  paid  that  sub- 
missive deference  to  the  king  which  a  wife  usually  pays 
to  the  husband  to  whom  she  owes  her  fortune. 

As  Petard  was  the  only  child  of  the  king  and  queen, 
his  father  and  mother  resolved  from  his  birth  to  marry 
him  to  a  little  princess,  the  niece  of  an  old  fairy,  named 
Gangan,  who  was  at  that  time  the  intimate  friend  of 
Petard's  father  and  mother.  It  is  true  that  the  princess 
was  not  yet  come  into  the  world;  but,  on  Gangan's  assur- 
ing them  that  she  should  one  day  be  an  accomplished 
person,  all  that  she  required  was  promised,  and  an  oath 
was  even  taken  to  insure  it. 

Petard  having  arrived  at  twenty-five  years  of  age, 
thought  it  would  be  proper  to  marry  to  his  own  mind; 
he  troubled  himself  but  little  ah^ut  his  father  and 
mother's  promises,  and  married,  without  their  consent, 
an  extremely  pretty  young  lady,  of  whom  he  was  very 


THE  KING  AND  HIS  MINISTER. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  243 

fond.  She  was  only  a  rich  farmer's  daughter;  but  al- 
though she  was  married  to  a  king's  son,  her  natural  good 
sense  prevented  her  becoming  vain,  that  is  to  say,  silly. 

The  king,  Petard's  father,  angry  at  that  prince's  mar- 
riage, could  not  refuse  to  Gangan  the  right  of  avenging 
the  affront  which  he  had  put  on  them  both;  he  accord- 
ingly disinherited  his  son,  forbade  him  ever  to  appear  at 
his  court,  and  gave  him  his  portion,  which  it  was  settled 
should  be  a  pretty  considerable  estate,  on  which  his 
father-in-law  was  farmer.  All  the  favor  that  was  granted 
him  was  leave  to  erect  this  little  estate  into  a  sovereignty, 
himself  having  the  title  of  king  and  majesty.  Shortly 
after  his  disgrace  his  father  died;  and  his  mother,  hav- 
ing obtained  the  regency,  was  not  sorry  to  be  unincum- 
bered  with  a  son,  who,  notwithstanding  his  want  of  wit, 
might  have  been  able  to  thwart  her  projects,  and  to 
oppose  her  desire  of  reigning. 

Petard  was  neither  ambitious  nor  a  conqueror;  conse- 
quently he  was  not  long  in  accustoming  himself  to  his 
small  estate,  and  even  in  becoming  very  well  pleased 
with  it.  Small  as  it  was,  he  reigned  therein,  as  though 
it  were  larger;  in  fact,  it  was  quite  as  large  as  was  neces- 
sary for  him,  and  the  titles  of  king  and  majesty  served 
him  instead  of  a  large  kingdom.  But  as  the  most 
bounded  minds  have  always  at  least  their  share  of  vanity, 
he  soon  prided  himself  in  imitating  the  king  his  father, 
and  created  a  seneschal,  a  solicitor-general,  and  a  cham- 
berlain (for  in  those  days  chancellors  and  parliaments 
were  unlike  unknown;  the  kings  administered  justice 
themselves,  and  received  in  person  their  revenues).  He 
also  coined  money,  instituted  with  his  seneschal  regula- 
tions for  the  police  of  his  little  kingdom;  his  father-in- 
law  Carbuncle  being  the  person  whom  he  honored  with 
the  title  of  seneschal.  He  was  a  frank,  sincere,  and  up- 
right man,  and  was  endowed  by  nature  with  good  com- 
mon sense  and  some  imagination:  accordingly  he  decided 
slowly,  but  nearly  always  justly;  he  knew  by  heart  the 
verses  of  the  poets  of  his  time,  and  was  fond  of  reciting 
them.  This  little  appointment  did  not  make  him  vain; 
for  he  continued  to  make  the  farm  as  valuable  as  before, 
which  so  gained  him  his  son-in-law's,  confidence  that  his 
majesty  soon  was  unable  to  do  without  him. 

Carbuncle  visited  the  king  every  morning,  and  took 


244  OLD,  OLD  PAIHT  TALES. 

his  breakfast  with  him;  they  talked  on  business,  bnt  the 
minister  would  very  often  say  to  the  king:  "Sire,  with 
your  permission,  you  do  not  understand  it;  allow  me  to 
manage  and  all  will  go  well;  'let  everybody  mind  his  own 
affairs/  says  the  poet." 

"But,"  replied  the  king,  "what  shall  I  do,  then?" 

"Whatever  you  like,"  answered  Carbuncle;  "you  can 
govern  your  wife  and  your  kitchen-garden;  that  is  all 
that  is  required  of  you." 

"In  truth,  I  think  that  you  are  right,"-  said  the  king; 
"so  do  as  you  think  fit." 

However,  to  lose  nothing  on  the  score  of  reputation, 
he  always  displayed  himself  on  feast-days  in  a  royal  cloak 
of  red  cloth,  printed  with  flowers -of  gold,  a  cap  of  the 
same  material,  with  a  gilded  wooden  scepter,  which  he 
had  bought  of  an  old  strolling  player,  who  had  retired 
from  the  stage.  In  accordance  with  the  advice  of  his 
seneschal  he  purchased  almanacs,  which  were  for- 
warded to  him  §very  year  in  the  month  of  July,  and 
which  he  had  regularly  bound  in  fine  marble  paper  with 
the  edges  gilt.  In  the  one  he  learned  the  proper  sowing 
time,  also  the  season  for  planting,  cutting,  grafting, 
draining  and  clearing,  and  he  trusted  in  it  so  implicitly 
that  he  often  physicked  himself  and  his  queen  when  they 
did  not  want  it.  In  the  other  he  studied  political  proph- 
ecies, with  which  he  was  so  bewildered  that  he  under- 
stood nothing  about  them.  At  the  end  of  a  few  years  all 
these  almanacs  formed  for  him  quite  a  little  library,  of 
which  he  was  as  fond  as  though  it  had  been  equal  to  the 
Bodleian,  and  he  and  the  seneschal  alone  had  keys  to  it. 
In  the  afternoon  he  employed  himself  in  his  royal  little 
kitchen-garden,  and  in  putting  in  practice  what  his 
almanac  had  taught  him  in  the  morning.  In  the  evening 
he  sent  for  Carbuncle,  with  whom  he  played  until  sup- 
per-time, at  "beat  my  neighbor  out  of  doors"  or  piquet; 
he  then  supped  in  public  with  the  queen,  and  at  ten 
o'clock  everybody  was  in  bed. 

Gilletta,  on  her  part,  employed  herself  with  the  house- 
hold affairs;  she  spun  with  her  women,  and  made  with 
her  cows'  and  goats'  milk  excellent  cheese,  and  delight- 
ful jam  tarts  for  her  husband's  supper;  but,  above  all, 
every  morning  she  never  failed  to  knead  a  little  cake  of 
barley  flour,  which  she  baked  on  the  hearth,  and  carried, 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  245 

with  a  cream  cheese,  to  her  little  garden,  where  she 
placed  it  at  the  foot  of  a  rose-tree,  as  she  had  been 
directed  in  a  dream  to  do  the  day  after  her  wedding. 


The  tranquillity  which  they  both  enjoyed  in  their  little 
kingdom  was  only  disturbed  by  thenvish  of  having  chil- 
dren. They  had  been  married  two  years,  and  Petard  had 
begun  to  despair,  when  one  day  as  he  was  in  his  fruit 


$46  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

garden  with  his  seneschal,  the  first  lady  of  honor  to  the 
queen  came  and  announced  to  him  that  he  had  become  a 
father. 

Transported  with  joy  at  this  intelligence,  he  embraced 
the  lady  with  all  his  heart,  and,  taking  from  his  finger  a 
fine  ring  formed  of  a  cat's  eye,  he  presented  it  to  her. 
He  did  not  stop  there,  for  he  gave  that  evening  a  grand 
supper  to  all  the  chief  men  of  his  kingdom;  after  which 
he  fired  off  himself  all  his  artillery,  which  consisted  of 
twelve  arquebuses  with  locks  and  six  carbines  with  rods. 
It  is  said  that  at  supper  his  immediate  joy  made  him  say 
things  incompatible  with  his  dignity,  and  that  when  his 
seneschal  remonstrated  with  him  upon  the  subject  he 
replied  by  throwing  a  large  glass  of  wine  in  that  minis- 
ter's face,  saying:  "Many  thanks,  father-in-law.  You 
are,  perhaps,  right;  but  one  is  not  a  father  every  day. 
However,  let  us  say  no  more  about  it,  and  let  us  rejoice, 
for  in  my  place  you  would,  perhaps,  act  quite  as  wisely." 
Carbuncle  made  no  reply,  and  everybody  withdrew  from 
their  majesties  very  well  pleased. 

As  the  king  was  loved  by  his  subjects,  rejoicings  were 
duly  made  the  same  day  and  hour  all  over  the  kingdom 
to  celebrate  this  event. 

"Everything  comes  in  time  to  him  who  can  wait,"  said 
the  queen  quietly.  For,  instead  of  one  child  at  one 
birth,  she  brought  Petard  seven:  three  boys,  three  girls, 
and  then  another  boy.  The  last  child  had  the  most 
beautiful  eyes  that  were  ever  seen,  a  white  skin,  and  eye- 
brows, like  his  hair,  black  as  jet;  as  he  was  born  with 
curly  hair  the  king  and  queen  liked  him  better  than  the 
others,  and  the  queen  absolutely  wished  herself  to  nurse 
her  little  Septimus,  which  was  his  name. 

At  the  end  of  eighteen  months  the  three  princes  be- 
came so  lively  and  playful  that  the  nurses  could  not  do 
anything  with  them.  When  they  complained  to  the 
king  he  answered  them:  "Let  them  alone;  when  they 
shall  be  as  old  as  I  am  they  will  not  be  so  lively;  I  was 
the  same,  I  who  am  now  speaking  to  you.  All  in  good 
time."  The  three  princesses,  on  the  contrarv,  were 
gentle;  but  so  dull,  so  quiet,  that  they  would  remain  in 
any  places  they  were  put;  which  caused  the  king  to  like 
his  sons  best,  and  the  queen  to  prefer  her  daughters,  ex- 
cept in  regard  to  Septimus,  who  had  none  of  his  broth- 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  24? 

ers'  and  sisters'  defects,  and  was  the  prettiest  child  in 
the  world.  He  would  soon  have  been  spoiled  if  a  kind 
fairy,  unknown  to  Gangan  and  even  to  Gilletta,  had  not 
endowed  him  with  an  equable  and  unchangeable  char- 
acter. 

When  it  was  necessary  to  wean  the  children  of  their 
majesties  a  cabinet  council  was  called,  composed  of  the 
seneschal,  the  solicitor-general,  the  chamberlain,  and  the 
nurses,  who  were  also  summoned.  After  a  long  discussion 
it  was  resolved,  by  the  advice  of  Carbuncle,  to  use  cows' 
milk  for  the  three  boys,  and  goats'  milk  for  the  three 
girls:  this  appeared  to  be  a  very  good  and  simple  means 
of  correcting  the  vivacity  of  the  princes,  and  the  dullness 
of  the  princesses.  But  when  they  were  older,  and  it  be- 
came necessary  to  give  them  more  substantial  food,  they 
consumed  such  an  enormous  quantity  that  the  king's 
revenues  were  considerably  diminished  thereby;  besides, 
as  the  princes  had  only  lost  part  of  their  vivacity  by  their 
early  nourishment,  and  the  princesses  had  acquired  an 
additional  quantity,  there  was  an  uproar  and  frightful 
quarreling  all  day  long.  The}7  fought  and  pulled  each 
other  about,  and  wore  out  so  many,  many  clothes  that 
there  could  hardly  be  enough  found  for  them.  The  little 
Septimus  alone  was  mild  and-  obedient,  and  his  brothers 
and  sisters  were  always  playing  him  some  roguish  trick. 
The  king  would  frequently  say  to  the  queen;  "Your 
three  daughters  grow  excessively  tall,  and  by  my  scepter, 
I  hardly  know  what  I  shall  do  with  them;  as  for  my  boys, 
I  will  give  them  the  care  of  my  farm;  but  for  your 
daughters,  it  is  different." 

To  which  the  queen  would  answer: 

"Sire,  let  us  have  patience;  for  everything  comes  in 
time  to  him  who  can  wait." 

While  King  Petard  made  himself  uneasy,  and  Queen 
Gilletta  kept  herself  quiet,  their  children  attained  seven 
years  of  age.  Every  one  of  those  who  composed  their 
court  had  already  given  his  advice,  or  rather  his  deci- 
sion, as  to  the  establishment  of  the  princesses  and  princes, 
when  one  morning  the  queen,  who  had  just  kneaded  her 
little  cake,  perceived  on  the  table  a  pretty  little  blue 
mouse  nibbling  the  dough;  her  first. impulse  was  to  drive 
it  away,  but  an  involuntary  feeling  withheld  her;  she 
watched  it  attentively,  and  was  much  surprised  to  see  it 


248 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


seize  the  little  cake  and  carry  it  up  the  chimney.  Her 
quietness  now  gave  way  to  her  impatience,  and  running 
after  the  mouse  with  the  intention  of  taking  its  booty 
from  it,  she  saw  both  disappear,  and  beheld  in  their 
place  a  little  shriveled  old  woman  a  foot  high  at  most. 


After  making  several  grimaces,  and  uttering  some  half- 
intelligible  words,  this  little  hop  o?  my  thumb  put  the 
shovel  and  tongs  across  each  other,  described  over  them 
with  the  broom  three  circles  and  three  triangles,  uttered 
seven  short  sharp  cries,  and  finished  by  throwing  the 
'oom  over  her  head.  The  queen,  notwithstanding  her 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  249 

fear,  did  not  fail  to  remark  that  the  old  woman,  while 
tracing  the  circles  and  triangles,,  had  distinctly  pro- 
nounced these  three  words,  "confidence,  discretion, 
happiness;"  and  was  trying  to  discover  their  meaning, 
when  a  voice  which  she  heard  in  the  next  room  attracted 
her  attention.  As  she  thought  it  was  Septimus'  voice, 
she  ran  there  immediately;  but  had  hardly  opened  the 
door  when  she  perceived  three  large  may-flies,  each  of 
which  held  in  its  paws  one  of  her  daughters;  and  three 
tall  young  ladies  who  had  on  their  backs  her  three  sons. 
They  all  immediately  passed  through  the  window,  sing- 
ing in  chorus  and  very  melodiously: 

"  Fly  away,  fly  of  May; 
Fly  away,  fly  away." 

What  moved  Gilletta  most  was,  to  see  in  the  midst  of 
them,  Septimus  between  the  blue  mouse's  paws;  they 
were  both  in  a  little  car  made  of  a  large  rose-colored 
snail-shell,  and  drawn  by  two  goldfinches,  with  beauti- 
fully streaked  feathers.  The  mouse,  who  now  appeared 
to  be  larger  than  mice  generally  are,  was  dressed  in  a 
beautiful  gown  of  Persian  silk,  and  a  mantle  of  black  vel- 
vet, a  hood  tied  under  its  chin,  and  had  -two  little  blue 
horns  over  its  forehead.  The  car,  the  may-flies  and  the 
young  ladies  went  away  so  quickly  that  the  queen  soon 
lost  sight  of  them.  Then,  more  concerned  at  the  loss  of 
Septimus  and  her  children  than  at  the  fairies  and  their 
power,  she  began  to  call  out  and  to  weep  with  all  her 
might.  The  king,  hearing  her  grief,  ran  to  the  cham- 
ber, followed  by  his  seneschal,  and  was  anxious  to  know 
what  had  occurred;  but  Gilletta's  grief  was  so  over- 
whelming that  she  could  only  answer  him  in  these  words: 

"The  may-flies! — the  young  ladies! — ah!  Sire,  my 
children  are  torn  from  me!" 

The  king,  who  only  paid  attention  to  these  last  words, 
abruptly  quitted  Gilletta,  and  ordered  Carbuncle  to  take 
two  muskets  from  his  antechamber,  for  he  always  had 
half  a  dozen  by  him  in  expectation  that  he  should  one 
day  have  as  many  guards.  Then,  crossing  his  royal 
kitchen-garden,  he  reached  the  country  with  the  design 
of  pursuing  and  killing  the  robbers.. 

About  an  hour  after  he  was  gone  the  queen,  who  had 
exhausted  her  tears,  and  was  in  the  garden  sighing  for 


250  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

the  loss  of  her  children,  heard  something  humming 
round  her,  and  saw  fall  at  her  feet  a  piece  of  paper 
folded  square;  she  picked  it  up,  opened  it  precipitately, 
and  read  as  follows: 

"Calm  your  uneasiness,  my  dear  Gilletta,  and  remem- 
ber that  your  happiness  depends  on  confidence  and  dis- 
cretion; you  have  begun  well  by  your  exactitude  in  giv- 


ing  me  your  cakes  and  cheeses,  and  my  gratitude  will  do 
the  rest;  but  always  be  convinced  that  'everything  comes 
in  time  to  him  who  can  wait,'  and  that  you  may  hope 
everything  from  your  friend, 

"THE  FAIRY  OF  THE  FIELDS." 

This  note,  together  with  her  confidence  in  the  power 
of  the  fairies,  sufficed  to  calm  her  inquietude,  and,  ad- 
dressing a  little  linnet  which  she  perceived  on  a  thistle 
near  her:  "Linnet,  pretty  linnet,"  said  she,  "I  will  do 
all  that  you  wish,  but  tell  me,  I  beg  of  you,  as  soon  as 
you  hear  of  him,  some  news  of  my  little  Septimus."  At 
these  words  the  linnet  fluttered  its  wings,  sang  a  few 
notes,  and  flew  away;  and  the  queen,  persuaded  that  this 
was  as  much  as  to  say,  "I  consent,"  thanked  it,  and  made 
the  bird  a  low  courtesy.  In  the  meantime  the  king  and 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  251 

his  seneschal,  tired  of  their  useless  pursuit,  had  returned 
to  the  house,  and  finding  the  queen  very  tranquil,  the 
king  was  somewhat  offended  at  her  apparent  indiffer- 
ence. He  asked  her  several  questions  to  ascertain  the 
cause,  to  which  Gilletta  gave  no  other  answer  than: 
"Everything  comes  in  time  to  him  who  can  wait."  This 
coolness  so  vexed  him  that  he  would  have  gone  into  a 
passion,  if  his  seneschal  had  not  urged  on  him  that  Gil- 
letta was  right,  and  that  the  poet  Pibrac  had  said  so 
before  her  in  one  of  his  couplets,  which  he  forthwith  re- 
cited. The  king,  to  whom  Carbuncle  was  an  oracle,  was 
silent,  and  listened  with  attention  to  a  nice  little  sermon 
which  he  then  preached  to  him  on  the  evil  of  having  chil- 
dren, and  the  vexation  and  expense  that  they  almost 
always  entail  on  their  parents.  "By  my  scepter,"  said  the 
king,  "my  father-in-law  is  right;  and  those  seven  brats 
would  have  ruined  me,  had  they  remained  with  me  much 
longer;  therefore,  many  thanks  to  him  or  her  who  has 
taken  them;  as  they  came  so  are  they  gone;  it  is  only  so 
much  lost  time;  so  let  us  rejoice  and  begin  again."  The 
queen,  who  was  afraid  of  saying  too  much,  very  pru- 
dently said  nothing;  and  the  king,  having  no  more  to 
say,  returned  to  his  closet  and  played  a  game  at  piquet 
with  his  seneschal. 

While  all  this  was  passing  with  King  Petard,  the 
queen  his  mother,  tiring  of  her  widowhood,  which  had 
now  lasted  an  unusually  long  time,  resolved  to  remarry. 
With  this  intention  she  cast  her  eyes  on  a  young  prince 
of  a  neighboring  kingdom,  sovereign  of  the  Green  Isles. 
He  was  handsome,  well  made,  and  his  mind  was  as  pleas- 
ing as  his  person;  his  pleasures  were  his  only  employ- 
ments; nothing  was  to  be  heard  of  but  his  extrava- 
gances; and  it  was  averred  that  every  pretty  woman  in  his 
kingdom  was  deeply  in  love  with  him. 

His  advantageous  reputation,  together  with  a  portrait 
of  the  prince,  so  turned  the  head  of  the  queen  that  she 
flattered  herself  with  the  idea  of  making  him  love  her 
and  fixing  his  inconstancy.  There  was  only  one  difficulty, 
which  was,  that  she  was  neither  young  nor  lovely;  she 
was  tall  and  thin,  had  small  eyes,  a  long  and  crooked 
nose,  and  a  large  mouth,  not  entirely  without  a  beard  on 
the  upper  lip.  Such  a  figure  might  not  be  without  its 
advantages  to  a  queen,  as  it  would  command  respect; 


252  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

but  it  was  little  calculated  to  inspire  love.  It  is  difficult 
to  blind  one's  self  to  one's  defects,  when  they  reach  a 
certain  point;  she  felt,  therefore,  in  moments  of  reflec- 
tion, that,  with  her  person,  it  would  be  imposible  for  her 
to  please  the  young  King  of  the  Green  Isles,  and  that 
to  succeed  in  so  doing  she  must  possess  beauty,  or,  at 
least,  youth;  but  how  to  come  by  it?  How  to  change 
gray  hairs  and  masculine  features  for  an  amiable  figure, 
infantine  graces,  and  an  enticing  mien?  It  is  true  that 
Gangan,  her  friend,  might  have  been  of  great  assistance 
to  her  in  this  affair,  but  as  that  fairy  had  several  times 
vainly  urged  the  queen  to  adopt  her  niece,  and  to  pro- 
claim her  heiress  to  the  crown,  she  had  everything  to 
fear  from  exciting  her  choler  by  such  a  proposal.  The 
old  queen  felt  all  this,  hesitated,  and  struggled,  but 
looked  so  frequently  at  the  portrait  .of  the  handsome 
Prince  of  the  Green  Isles  that  love  at  last  conquered  her 
fear  of  the  fairy,  to  whom  she  communicated  her  senti- 
ments, conjuring  her  in  the  most  pressing  terms  to  assist 
her  with  her  art,  and  not  to  refuse  her  this  essential 
proof  of  her  friendship.  She  even  went  so  far  as  to  show 
her  the  portrait  of  the  young  prince,  begging  her  ap- 
proval of  her  design.  Gangan  could  not  conceal  her  sur- 
prise, but  she  dissimulated  her  resentment;  she  foresaw 
the  bad  consequences  of  protesting  openly  against  this 
marriage,  since  the  King  of  the  Green  Isles,  who  had 
nearly  ruined  his  estates  in  supporting  his  extravagance, 
might  find  it  convenient  to  conclude  the  union  from  in- 
terested motives,  and  might  oppose  her  designs  by  the 
assistance  of  a  powerful  protecting  genius  of  his  king- 
dom; so,  pretending  to  give  her  hand  to  this  affair,  she 
promised  the  queen  to  set  to  work  at  making  her  young 
again;  but  she  promised  herself,  at  the  same  time,  to 
deceive  the  queen,  and  to  put  the  execution  of  her  will 
out  of  her  majesty's  power. 

On  the  day  that  the  fairy  had  appointed  for  the  fulfill- 
ment of  her  promises,  she  appeared  dressed  in  a  long 
flesh-colored  and  silver  satin  robe;  her  headdress  was 
composed  entirely  of  artificial  flowers  and  tinsel  trinkets; 
a  little  dwarf  held  the  end  of  her  robe,  and  carried 
under  his  left  arm  a  black  box.  The  queen  received  her 
with  the  greatest  marks  of  respect  and  gratitude,  and 
begged  her,  after  the  usual  compliments,  not  to  delay 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.-  253 

her  happiness.  The  fairy  consented,  made  everybody 
retire,  and  ordered  her  dwarf  to  shut  the  doors  and  win- 
dows; then,  having  taken  from  her  box  a  vellum  book, 
ornamented  with  large  silver  clasps,  a  wand  made  of  three 
metals,  and  a  vial  which  contained  a  very  clear  but 
greenish  liquid,  she  seated  the  queen  on  a  cushion  in  the 
middle  of  the  room,  and  desired  the  dwarf  to  place  him- 
self opposite  her  majesty;  then,  having  traced  round 
them  three  spiral  circles,  she  read  in  her  book,  touched 
the  queen  and  the  dwarf  three  times  with  her  wand,  and 
sprinkled  them  with  the  liquid  just  spoken  of.  Then 
the  queen's  features  began  to  grow  gradually  less,  and 
the  size  of  the  little  dwarf  to  increase  in  proportion;  so 
that  in  less  than  three  minutes  they  changed  figures 
without  feeling  the  slightest  inconvenience.  Although 
the  queen  was  armed  with  courage,  still  she  could  not 
witness  the  dwarf's  increasing  size  without  some  fear; 
which  was  so  augmented  by  a  bluish  flame  which  rose  all 
at  once  from  the  three  circles,  that  she  suddenly  fainted 
away;  when  the  fairy,  having  finished  the  enchantment, 
opened  a  window  and  disappeared  with  her  page,  who, 
notwithstanding  his  increased  height,  still  held  his  mis- 
tress' robe  and  carried  the  china  box. 

The  first  thing  that  the  queen  did,  after  she  had  re- 
gained her  senses,  was  to  consult  her  looking-glass;  she 
there  saw,  with  the  utmost  pleasure,  that  her  features 
were  charming  in  the  extreme;  but  did  not  remark  that 
these  same  features  were  those  of  a  little  girl  of  eight  or 
nine  years  old;  that  her  dress  hat  had  taken  the  shape 
of  a  girl's  cap,  furnished  with  ringlets  of  fair  hah,  and 
that  her  gown  was  changed  to  a  frock  with  short  sleeves 
and  a  lace  apron;  all  this,  added  to  her  slender  figure, 
which  the  charm  had  not  in  the  least  degree  diminished, 
made  her  a  very  droll  object;  however,  she  observed  it 
not,  for,  of  all  the  ideas  that  she  had  possessed  before 
the  enchantment,  those  only  remained  which  referred 
to  the  Prince  of  the  Green  Isles,  and  to  the  love  which 
she  felt  for  him.  She  was,  therefore,  quite  as  contented 
with  herself  as  her  courtiers  were  astonished  at  her  ap- 
pearance; they  knew  not  what  to  do*  even,  or  what  part 
to  take,  when  the  prime-minister,  on  .whom  all  the  great 
depended,  extricated  them  from  their  embarrassment, 
and  decided  that,  so  far  from  contradicting  the  queen,  it 


254  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

was  necessary  to  flatter  her  majesty's  tastes  and  humors; 
and  he  began  by  ordering  his  wife  and  daughters  to  con- 
form themselves  to  her  will.  Soon,  to  please  the  minis- 
ter, the  example  was  followed,  and,  in  a  short  time,  all 
the  court  dressed  like  the  queen,  and  imitated  her  in  all 
she  did.  Every  one,  even  the  men,  spoke  childishly;  no 
one  played  at  any  game  but  puss  in  the  corner,  at  for- 
feits, or  birds,  beasts  and  fishes.  The  cooks  had  to  dress 
nothing  but  custards,  tartlets  and  little  puffs.  Nothing 
was  done  but  dressing  and  undressing  dolls,  and  at  all 
the  games  and  feasts  the  only  subject  of  conversation 
was  the  King  of  the  Green  Isles.  The  queen  spoke  of 
him  a  hundred  times  a  day,  and  always  called  him  her 
little  husband.  She  asked  for  him  continually,  and  was 
satisfied  for  some  time  with  each  subterfuge  which  was 
used  to  flatter  or  deceive  her;  but  at  last  gayety  gave 
way  to  caprice,  and  she  felt  all  the  humors  of  a  child 
who  has  not  obtained  what  it  wants  and  whose  nurse 
dares  not  oppose  its  will.  After  being  amused  for  some 
time  with  so  singular  an  event  (for  the  indolence  of  a 
court  causes  it  to  amuse  itself  with  anything),  people 
grew  tired  of  the  puerilities  of  this  great  child;  and 
weary  of  the  constraint,  as  well  as  of  the  complaisance 
which  it  was  necessary  to  display,  they  forsook  her 
court,  and  it  was  on  the  point  of  being  quite  abandoned, 
when  it  was  positively  stated  in  the  Court  Circular  that 
the  King  of  the  Green  Isles,  who  was  traveling  over  the 
neighboring  kingdoms,  would  soon  arrive  there.  At  this 
news  their  courage  revived.  The  queen  became  so  gay 
and  cheerful  that  she  did  nothing  but  sing  and  dance 
while  awaiting  the  prince's  arrival.  The  happy  moment 
at  length  arrived;  she  ran  to  meet  him,  and  although  she 
was  told  that  it  was  contrary  to  etiquette,  she  actually 
determined  to  receive  him  at  the  foot  of  her  staircase! 
but  as  she  was  hastily  descending  she  became  entangled 
in  her  train,  which  had  been  recently  lengthened  in  ac- 
cordance with  the  fashion,  and  fell  with  considerable  vio- 
lence. Although  her  hands  had  saved  her  head,  and  her 
nose  was  only  slightly  grazed,  she  was  so  frightened  that 
she  uttered  loud  crfes,  and  was  carried  to  her  chamber, 
when  her  face  was  bathed  with  Hungary  water,  and  she 
was  only  quieted  on  being  informed  that  her  little  hus- 
band was  come  to  see  her,  and  in  truth  the  prince  ap- 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  255 

peared,  but  the  sight  of  the  queen-child  made  him  burst 
into  such  violent  tits  of  laughter  that  he  was  obliged  to 
quit  the  room  and  even  the  palace.  The  queen,  who 
witnessed  his  departure,  began  to  cry  with  all  her  might 
that  she  wanted  her  little  husband;  he  was  followed  and 
entreated  to  return,  but  ineffectually,  for  he  would  not 
consent;  but  made  the  best  of  his  way  from  a  court  where 
everybody  appeared  to  him  to  be  insane.  The  queen,  as 
may  be  supposed,  was  inconsolable;  in  vain  every  means 
was  tried  to  calm  her:  her  ill-humor  only  became  the 
more  insupportable  in  consequence,  and  the  yoke  appeared 
to  press  too  heavily  on  those  even  who  liked  her  best.  The 
majority,  ashamed  to  be  the  subjects  of  such  a  queen, 
were  of  opinion  that  it  would  be  the  best  to  dethrone 
her,  which  was  about  to  be  done,  when  Gangan,  who  only 
wished  to  disgust  her  with  marriage,  disenchanted  her, 
and  restored  her  original  appearance.  At  the  sight  of 
her  natural  figure  she  thought  of  stabbing  herself  in  de- 
spair; she  had  found  herself  charming  under  that  she 
had  just  quitted,  and  now  saw  in  its  place  but  a  face  of 
upward  of  sixty,  and  an  ugliness  which  she  detested. 
She  never  conceived  that  she  had  been  in  the  least  ridicu- 
lous under  her  late  metamorphosis,  and  had  certainly  lost 
none  of  her  love,  so  that  the  loss  of  her  youth,  and  of  the 
Prince  of  the  Green  Isles,  threw  her  into  a  languor  which 
threatened  her  life,  and  inspired  her  at  the  same  time 
with  an  implacable  hatred  for  the  fairy  Gangan.  With 
regard  to  her  subjects,  they  began  to  pity  her,  and  to 
look  on  these  events  as  a  just  punishment  for  the  sacri- 
fice she  had  made  of  her  maternal  tenderness  and  grati- 
tude, at  the  shrine  of  ambition  and  to  her  insensate 
desires. 

It  was  about  this  time  that  the  Fairy  of  the  Fields  had 
taken  away  the  children  of  Petard  and  Gilletta.  The 
generous  fairy  was  the  protectress  of  those  who  were 
obliged  to  live  in  the  country,  and  occupied  herself  in- 
cessantly in  preventing  or  diminishing  the  misfortunes 
to  which  they  were  destined.  She  was  the  better  able  to 
protect  them,  inasmuch  as  she  possessed  the  friendship 
and  favor  of  Titania,  the  queen  of  the  fairies. 

The  Isle  Bambine,  which  that  queen  had  placed  under 
her  government,  was  the  place  to  which  she  had  trans- 
ported the  four  boys  and  three  girls  of  King  Petard  and 


256  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

Queen  Gilletta.  This  isle  was  inhabited  by  children  only, 
who,  under  the  protection  of  the  fairies,  were  well  looked 
after  by  nurses  and  their  attendants.  A  perpetual  spring 
reigned  there;  the  trees  and  meadows  were  always  cov- 
ered with  fruit  and  flowers,  and  the  ground  produced 
spontaneously  all  that  could  please  the  eye  or  gratify  the 
palate.  The  walks  were  charming,  the  gardens  varied 
and  filled  with  pretty  little  carriages  of  all  kinds,  drawn 
by  spaniels  with  long  ears.  But,  nicest  and  best  of  all, 
tne  walls  of  the  children's  rooms  were  made  of  sugar- 
candy,  the  floors  of  preserved  citron,  and  the  furniture 
of  excellent  gingerbread.  When  they  were  very  good 
the  children  might  eat  of  these  nice  things  as  much  as 
they  pleased,  without  its  diminishing  or  injuring  them 
in  the  slightest  degree,  and  besides  this,  in  the  streets 
and  walks  were  to  be  seen  all  sorts  of  pretty  little  dolls, 
magnificently  dressed,  who  walked  and  danced  of  them- 
selves. The  little  girls,  who  were  neither  proud,  nor 
greedy,  nor  disobedient,  had  only  to  form  a  wish  and  im- 
mediately sweetmeats  and  fruits  came  of  themselves  to 
seek  them;  the  dolls  threw  themselves  into  their  arms 
and  allowed  themselves  to  be  dressed  and  undressed, 
caressed  and  punished  with  unparalleled  docility  and 
discretion;  but  when,  on  the  other  hand,  these  little  girls 
committed  any  fault,  the  dolls  ran  away  from  them,  mak- 
ing faces  at  those  who  had  called  them;  the  sweetmeats 
changed  into  gall,  and  the  dolls'  dresses  became  dirty 
and  slovenly.  With  regard  to  the  little  boys,  when  they 
were  neither  obstinate,  story-telling,  nor  idle,  they  had 
little  punchinellos,  kites,  rackets,  and  playthings  for 
every  sport  that  can  be  thought  of;  but  when  the  nurses 
were  discontented,  the  punchinellos  laughed  at  the 
naughty  boys,  bouncing  against  their  noses,  and  upbraid- 
ing them  with  the  faults  they  had  committed;  the  kites 
had  no  wind,  the  rackets  were  pierced — in  a  word,  noth- 
ing succeeded  with  them,  and  the  more  obstinate  they 
were  the  worse  this  was.  There  were  punishments  and 
rewards  of  some  kind  or  other  for  all  ages;  as,  for  ex- 
ample, one  found  himself  on  a  donkey,  who  had  expected 
to  be  mounted  on  a  little  horse  nicely  caparisoned;  or 
another  heard  it  said  of  herself:  "Ah!  how  ugly  she  is; 
how  slovenly  she  is;  how  did  she  come  here?"  while  the 
good  young  girls  were  well  dressed,  caressed,  and  re- 


OLD,  OLD  FAIR7  TALES. 


«J 


ip 

*•«-»?, 


warded;  in  a  word,  nothing 
was  neglected  to  correct  in  the 
children  faults  both  of  heart 
and  head,  and  to  instruct  and 
arouse  them  they  were  allowed 
to  read  the  annals  of  fairyism, 
which  contain  the  most  re- 
markable histories  of  that  em- 
pire, as  "Blue  Beard,"  the 
"Beneficent  Frog,"  the  "Good 
Little  Mouse,"  the  "Blue 
Bird,"  and  many  others;  for 
the  Fairy  of  the  Fields  made  a 
great  matter  of  it,  and  col- 
lected them  with  great  care 
from  all  the  kingdoms  of  the 
world,  and  it  is  from  her  copy 
that  most  of  these  tales  are 
printed. 

While  the  children  of  Pe- 
tard and  Gilletta  were  resid- 
ing in  the  Isle  of  Bambine,  every  means  imaginable  was 
put  in  practice  to  overcome  the  obstinacy  of  the  three 
boys  and  the  pride  of  the  three  girls;  but  these  faults,  far 
from  diminishing,  only  augmented  with  their  years.  For 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRt  TALES. 

four  years,  the  particular  interest  which  the  fairy  gov- 
erness herself  took  in  these  children,  joined  to  the  cares, 
the  attention  and  patience  of  the  nurses,  had  scarcely 
wrought  the  slightest  perceptible  change  in  their  dispo- 
sitions; when  feeling  but  too  strongly  that  their  natural 
tendencies  were  too  powerful  for  a  simple  education,  the 
fairy  no  longer  sought  to  overcome  them  by  the  usual 
means,  but  was  obliged  to  have  recourse  to  the  violent 
remedy  of  a  metamorphosis;  and  in  truth,  although  this 
extreme  measure  appears  somewhat  hard,  it  was  yet  in- 
dispensable under  the  circumstances,  with  a  view  to  the 
formation  of  their  future  characters.  The  children,  not- 
withstanding their  changes,  preserved  the  ideas  and  senti- 
ments of  what  they  were,  and  of  what  they  had  been; 
still  yielding  to  the  laws  of  their  new  state.  When  the 
fairy,  who  had  the  power  of  penetrating  their  thoughts, 
believed  them  reclaimed,  she  restored  to  them  their 
proper  forms  and  her  friendship;  and  even  procured 
them  advantageous  establishments.  She  changed,  then, 
although  with  considerable  pain  to  her  own  feelings,  the 
three  sons  of  Petard  into  punchinellos,  and  the  three 
girls  into  dancing  dolls,  and  condemned  them  to  remain 
as  puppets  for  the  space  of  three  years.  As  she  was,  how- 
ever, as  satisfied  with  Prince  Septimus  as  she  had  been 
displeased  with  his  brothers  and  sisters,  she  did  not  wish 
him  to  be  a  witness  of  their  disgrace,  and  resolved  to  re- 
move him  from  them.  The  only  difficulty  was  to  find  an 
asylum  where  he  would  be  safe  from  the  machinations  of 
Gangan:  so,  to  neglect  nothing  on  his  account,  she 
thought  it  would  be  well  to  consult  with  her  friend,  the 
queen  of  the  fairies,  and  take  her  mature  advice  on 
what  she  was  about  to  dp.  With  this  intention  she  put 
on  her  green  velvet  farthingale,  her  jonquil-colored  satin 
mantle,  and  her  little  blue  riding-hood;  and  with  nine 
white  may-flies  attached  to  her  gilded  wicker  post-chaise, 
their  harness  being  of  rose-colored  ribbon,  she  set  out 
with  all  diligence,  and  arrived  in  a  short  time  at  the  For- 
tunate Island,  where  the  queen  of  the  fairies  ordinarily 
resided. 

Having  alighted  at  the  end  of  a  magnificent  avenue  of 
orange  and  citron  trees,  she  entered  the  courtyard  of  the 
castle,  where  she  found,  in  a  row,  twenty-four  black 
genii,  six  feet  high,  wearing  long  gowns  with  trains,  and 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  259 

carrying  on  the  left  shoulder  a  polished  steel  club;  they 
had  behind  them  seventy-four  black  ostriches  spotted 
with  red  and  blue,  which  they  held  in  leashes,  keeping  a 
profound  silence.  These  black  genii  were  wicked  fairies, 
condemned  to  hold  these  posts  as  slaves  for  several  ages, 
according  to  the  nature  of  their  crimes.  When  they 
perceived  the  fairy  they  saluted  her,  grounding  their 
clubs  on  the  pavement;  and  as  that  was  of  steel  also,  it 
made  a  clashing  sound,  and  emitted  sparks  of  fire.  This 
honor  was  rendered  to  all  who,  like  the  Fairy  of  the 
Fields,  had  a  government.  Having  ascended  the  stair- 
case, which  was  made  of  porphyry,  jasper,  agate  and 
lapis-lazuli,  she  saw  in  the  first  apartment  twelve  young 
ladies  simply  dressed,  without  hoods;  they  had  only  a 
key  chain  round  their  waist,  and  the  half- wand,  with  which 
they  saluted  her  as  had  done  the  slaves;  the  fairy  re- 
turned their  salutation,  for  their  employment  was  such  as 
is  generally  given  to  those  who  are  about  to  be  initiated 
in  the  art  of  fairyism.  She  passed  through  a  long  suite 
of  apartments  magnificently  furnished,  and  at  last 
reached  the  queen's  ^antechamber,  which  she  found  full 
of  fairies,  who  were  met  there  from  all  parts  of  the 
world,  some  on  business,  others  to  pay  their  court  to  her 
majesty. 

The  queen's  closet  was  nearly  empty,  when  she  saw 
the  old  fairy  Gangan  come  from  it.  The  respect  which 
fairies  and  all  good  people  ever  pay  to  their  sovereign 
could  scarcely  prevent  her  from  laughing  at  the  sight  of 
so  grotesque  a  figure  as  that  of  Gangan.  Over  a  skirt  of 
green  satin,  bedizened  with  blue  and  gold  lace,  she  wore 
a  large  farthingale  of  the  same  material,  embroidered 
with  rose-colored  caterpillars  and  a  half-girdle  enriched 
with  emeralds.  Hanging  to  a  silver  chain,  she  had  a 
small  looking-glass  and  patch-box,  a  large  watch,  and  a 
casket  of  rare  coins;  her  ears  were  loaded  with  two  large 
pearl  and  ruby  drops,  and  she  had  on  her  head  a  light 
yellow  velvet  hood,  with  an  aigrette  of  amethysts  and 
topazes;  a  large  bouquet  of  jasmine  ornamented  the  front 
of  her  person,  and  ten  or  twelve  patches,  scattered  over 
a  faded  rouge,  covered  a  wrinkled  and  dry -rose-leaf- 
colored  skin. 

If  the  Fairy  of  the  Fields  was  surprised  at  the  ridicu- 
lous equipage  of  Gangan,  the  latter  was  not  less  so  at 


260  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

meeting  with  her  rival,  at  a  moment  when  she  least 
expected  it.  She  was  not  ignorant  of  the  protection 
afforded  by  the  fairy  to  the  children  of  Petard  and  Gil- 
letta;  but  as  the  place  they  were  then  in  prevented  her 
giving  vent  to  her  resentment,  she  concealed  it  as  well  as 
she  could;  and  affecting  an  air  of  politeness  mingled  with 
dignity,  said  to  her: 

"What,  madam,  have  you  resolved  to  leave  the  quiet 
of  the  country,  to  revel  in  the  tumult  of  a  court?  you 
must  have  had  weighty  reasons  to  induce  you  to  make 
such  a  sacrifice." 

"The  reasons  which  bring  you  and  myself  here  are  cer- 
tainly widely  different,"  interrupted  the  Fairy  of  the 
Fields;  "as  neither  interest  nor  ambition  have  ever  been 
motives  for  the  grant  of  my  protection,  and  as  I  only 
yield  it  to  the  worthy  and  grateful." 

"I  believe  so,"  replied  Gangan,  "turkeys  and  geese 
are  a  very  good  sort  of  people." 

"True,"  answered  the  Fairy  of  the  Fields  warmly, 
"much  more  so  than  Gaugans,  for  they  are  not  unjust — 
what  say  you  to  that?" 

The  dispute  would  not  have  ended  here,  if  the  Fairy 
of  the  Fields  had  not  been  warned  that  the  queen  was 
alone  and  wished  to  speak  with  her.  So  the  two  fairies 
saluted  and  parted,  as  women  who  perfectly  hate  each 
•other  always  do. 

Titania,  who  perceived  the  emotion  that  this  dispute 
had  raised  in  her  friend,  feigned  ignorance  of  its  cause, 
but  requested  to  be  informed  on  the  subject.  The  Fairy 
of  the  Fields,  pleased  to  gratify  her  mistress*  curiosity, 
did  not  hesitate  in  revealing  the  unjust  motives  of  Gan- 
gan for  persecuting  King  Petard  and  Queen  Gilletta,  and 
informed  her  that  pity  had  made  her  endeavor  to  thwart 
the  perfidious  designs  of  that  fairy.  "Your  intentions 
are  praiseworthy,"  said  the  queen  to  her,  "and  I  am  glad 
to  see  in  you  this  generous  zeal  in  protecting  the  un- 
fortunate; but  I  am  afraid,  notwithstanding,  that  Gangan 
will  still  manage  to  avenge  herself  for  the  kindness  you 
have  shown  to  the  good  Gilletta  and  her  children.  She 
is  wicked,  and  I  often  receive  complaints  in  respect  to 
her;  but  be  assured  that  if  she  again  abuse  her  power  to 
your  injury,  I  will  punish  her  in  a  terrible  and  exemplary 
manner;  I  can  say  no  more:  the  council  hour  has  arrived, 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  261 

but  at  my  return  we  will  confer  together  on  the  means  of 
thwarting  your  enemy's  wicked  designs."  The  queen 
then  left  the  apartment. 

When  the  Fairy  of  the  Fields  was  alone  she  could  not 
resist  an  inclination  to  consult  her  sovereign's  books. 
All  the  mysteries  of  fairyism  are  therein  revealed,  and  by 
them  may  be  discovered,  from  day  to  day,  what  is  pass- 
ing all  over  the  universe.  The  queen  only  had  the  power 
of  suspending  or  turning  the  course  of  events;  holding 
over  fairies  the  same  dominion  as  the  fairies  hold  over 
mankind.  The  protectress  of  our  hero  had  no  sooner 
opened  these  books  than  she  read  in  them  distinctly  that 
by  the  power  of  Grand  Fairyism  the  perfidious  Gangan 
was  at  that  moment  carrying  off  the  young  Prince  Septi- 
mus, and  was  then  transporting  him  to  the  inaccessible 
island  in  which  she  had  kept  her  own  niece  since  the 
hour  of  her  birth.  At  this  sight  she  at  first  trembled  for 
the  life  of  her  protege,  ^and  then  for  his  heart  and  his 
sentiments,  for  she  knew  that  this  wicked  fairy  was  more 
capable  of  corrupting  than  of  forming  the  mind.  The 
uneasiness  that  this  event  caused  her  gave  way  to  reflec- 
tion, and  she  was  considering  the  means  of  preventing 
the  consequences  of  this  occurrence,  when  the  queen 
came  from  council  and  rejoined  her.  From  the  sorrow 
which  she  perceived  on  her  friend's  countenance,  Titania 
guessed  what  had  taken  place  during  her  absence;  and 
speaking  to  her  said:  "You  have,  I  see,  satisfied  your 
curiosity;  and  have  learned  that  which  I  would  have 
kept  from  your  knowledge.  I  was  unable,  it  is  true,  to 
refuse  Gangan  the  power  of  Grand  Fairyism,  since,  ac- 
cording to  our  laws,  it  is  due  to  her  long  standing;  but 
the  knowledge  which  I  possess  of  her  character  has  made 
me  limit  this  power  to  a  certain  space  of  time;  be-  as- 
sured, generous  fairy,  that  when  that  period  has  elapsed 
your  enemy  shall  be  severely  punished  if  she  shall  have 
abused  the  power  which  she  holds  only  from  our  laws  and 
my  kindness.  However,  to  give  you  to-day  a  proof  of 
my  friendship  for  you,  and  to  place  Gilletta's  other  chil- 
dren, in  whom  you  are  interested,  out  of  Gangan's  reach, 
take  this  vial,  and  rub  them  with  the  liquid  it  contains. 
It  is  invisible-water,  and  conceals  objects  from  the  sight 
of  fairies  alone;  its  charm  is  such  that  Gangan,  with  all 
her  power,  cannot  overcome  it.  Go,  my  dear  friend,  re- 


2 62  6L&,  OLD  PA  1R  Y 

member  always  that  your  queen  loves  generosity  and 
protects  virtue:  and  ever  rely  on  her  protection  and  ten- 
derness." At  these  words  the  fairy  respectfully  took  the 
queen's  hand,  kissed  it,  and  departed. 

No  sooner  was  she  in  her  island  than  she  made  use  of 
the  invisible-water.  With  it  she  rubbed  the  three  pun- 
chinellos  and  the  three  dancing-dolls,  with  the  exception 
of  the  tips  of  their  noses,  which  she  left  visible  in  order 
to  recognize  them  herself;  then,  having  given  her  orders 
and  consulted  her  books,  she  set  out  for  Petard's  king- 
dom, where  she  learned  that  her  presence  was  necessary. 

In  truth,  when  she  arrived  there,  Petard's  little  state 
was  in  sad  disorder,  and  the  cause  was  this:  It  was  now  a 
long  time  past  since  the  house  in  which  his  majesty  had 
resided,  and  in  which  his  father-in-law,  the  seneschal, 
had  lived  before  him,  had  fallen  in  on  all  sides,  in  spite 
of  the  repairs  which  it  had  undergone.  Petard  had  re- 
solved, in  a  consultation  with  a  master  mason,  whom  he 
had  made  his  chief  architect,  to  rebuild.  This  crown- 
officer,  not  having  for  some  time  done  anything  for  their 
majesties,  had  completely  razed  the  old  building,  with 
the  design  of  commencing  a  new  one,  which,  according 
to  his  account,  was  to  be  miujh  more  magnificent.  The 
king's  savings  since  the  abduction  of  his  children  and  his 
annual  revenues  not,  how/ever,  being  sufficient  for  the 
erection  of  this  new  edifice,  he  resolved,  a^t  the  recom- 
mendation of  his  chanyberlain  and  solicitor-general,  £o 
levy  a  tax,  in  order  to  ifaise  the  funds  necessary  to  meet 
the  expense  of  his  new  palace.  His  subjects,  who  had 
not  hitherto  paid  taxes,  murmured  loudly,  and  swore  not 
to  do  so  then;  they  even  threatened  to  complain  of  him 
to  the  queen-mother.  To  their  discontent,  which  as  usual 
was1  not  very  civilly  expressed,  were  joined  the  remon- 
strances of  Carbuncle,  who  insisted  that  it  was  ridiculous 
to  make  others  pay  for  a  thing  which  could  be  neither 
useful  nor  profitable  to  them;  that  his  majesty  was,  in 
truth,  but  a  man  like  other  men;  that  having  his  own 
property  and  revenues,  he  ought  not  to  take  those  of 
others  for  the  sake  of  having  more  to  spend;  that,  conse- 
quently, while  he  had  only  the  means  of  building  a  house, 
he  ought  not  to  have  a  castle;  and  that  he,  who  had  only 
a  crown,  ought  to  spend  a  crown  only.  PAH  these  rea- 
sons appeared  very  good  to  the  king;  but,  at  the  same 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  263 

time,  the  solicitor-general  and  the  chamberlain  told  him 
that  he  was  master;  that  it  was  not  worth  while  having 
subjects  if  they  were  not  made  to  pay  for  the  trouble 
that  was  taken  in  their  government;  that  they  were  made 
to  work  and  kings  to  spend;  and  that  there  was  but  one 
seneschal  capable  of  thinking  or  advising  otherwise. 
The  king  thought  that  they  also  reasoned  very  justly, 
and  determined,  consequently,  to  levy  the  tax.  However, 
each  of  the  councilors  took  his  own  side  of  the  question, 
and  loudly  proclaimed  his  decision.  "They  shall  not 
pay,"  said  one  party;  "They  shall  be  made  to  pay,"  said 
the  other.  "It  shall  not  be  so,"  said  Carbuncle,  "I  am 
determined."  "It  shall, "said  the  solicitor-general,  "or  I 
will  lose  my  Latin."  At  last  they  made  such  a  hubbub 
that  it  would  have  been  impossible  to  hear  one's  self 
speak.  The  king,  who  no  longer  understood  what  they 
said  and'  knew  not  what  part  to  take,  left  them,  and  when 
he  was  with  the  queen,  said  to  her: 

"Oh!  by  my  scepter,  if  this  continues  I  will  give  up 

foverning,  and  then  whoever  wishes  to  be  king  may;  and 
will  go  so  far,  so  far,  that  I  will  not  hear  speak  of  the 
kingdom,  the  people,  nor  the  palace." 

"Do  not  irritate  yourself,  sire,"  said  the  queen  to  him 
quietly;  "I  have  already  had  the  honor  of  telling  your 
riiajesty  bhajb,  everything  comes  in  time  to  him  who  can 
Wait."  ( 

9  "But,"  said  the  king,  "what  do  you  wisn^me  to  wait 
for?  If  they  who  have  taken  away  our  childreiihad  left 
us  a  house  instead  of  them,  we  should  not  have  been  so 
badly  off;  but  doubtless  Gangan  has  done  it  all;  and,  if 
this  continue,  we  shall  have  no  more  houses  than  we  have 
children."  Then  he  commenced  repeating  so  many  tire- 
some invectives  against  the  fairies  that  the  good  Gilletta 
was  much  vexed  with  him. 

The  fairy,  who  had  witnessed  for  some  time  what  was 
passing,  and  was  very  anxious  for  the  queen's  peace  of 
mind,  at  last  appeared  to  her  in  the  shape  of  a  linnet, 
as  she  ha^done  before;  and  quieted  her  with  the  assur- 
ance that  stie  would  soon  give  her  convincing  proofs  of 
her  friendship  and  protection.  Gilletta,  transported  with 
joy,  kissed  her  a  thousand  times,  having  first  asked  her 
permission,  entreated  her  to  stop,  and  promised  her,  as 
an  inducement,  that  every  day  while  she  resided  with  her 


264  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

she  should  have  a  little  cake  made  of  millet  flour,  hemp- 
seed  and  milk:  the  fairy  agreed,  and  Gilletta's  promises 
were  duly  fulfilled.  A  fortnight  after  her  arrival  the 
king,  who  generally  rose  early,  was  very  much  surprised 
to  find  himself  in  quite  a  new  house,  very  convenient  and 
strongly  built:  I  say  a  house;  for  it  was  but  a  house,  and 
not  at  all  a  palace;  there  was  about  it  neither  architec- 
ture, painting,  sculpture,  nor  gilding.  On  the  ground 
floor  was  a  kitchen,  a  pantry,  a  dining-room,  and  an  audi- 
ence-chamber; on  the  first  floor  an  antechamber,  a  bed- 
room, a  closet,  the  queen's  wardrobe,  and  a  large  closet 
in  a  wing  for  the  king,  in  which  his  library,  of  which 
mention  has  been  made,  was  already  arran'ged.  Above 
were  nice  galleries,  well  ceiled,  from  which  was  visible  the 
most  beautiful  prospect  in  the  world.  A  dairy  had  not 
been  forgotten,  with  all  the  utensils  thereunto  appertain-, 
ing;  but  the  most  admirable  part  of  the  whole  affair  was,  k 
that  the  house  was  well  furnished  and  stored  with  every- 
thing necessary;  the  furniture  was  exactly  like,  both  in 
materials  and  shape,  to  that  of  their  majesties,  and  they 
could  hardly  have  told  it  apart,  if  the  one  had  not  been 
newer  than  the  other.  Petard's  astonishment  may  be 
easily  imagined  at  finding  himself  in  a  strange  house; 
but  it  was  considerably  increased  when,  on  looking 
through  one  of  his  bedroom  windows,  he  saw,  where  had 
been  his  little  royal  kitchen-garden,  a  large  grass-plot 
and  bowling-green,  at  the  end  of  which  was  a  very  pretty 
pond,  and  a  forest  of  lofty  trees.  To  the  right  of  the 
bowling-green  was  a  kitchen-garden,  stocked  with  differ- 
ent vegetables,  and  to  the  left  an  orchard  planted  with 
all  kinds  of  fruit-trees.  He  considered  all  this  for  some 
time:  but,  his  surprise  giving  way  to  joy,  he  ran  to  the 
queen,  who  was  in  bed  and  still  asleep,  and  waking  her, 
cried:  "My  dear,  my  dear,  pray  get  up,  and  look  at  our 
new  house  and  fine  gardens.  Do  you  know  the  meaning 
of  it  all?  I  have  not  the  least  idea."  The  queen  hardly 
gave  herself  time  to  put  on  her  petticoat,  morning-gown 
and  slippers  before  she  ran  to  the  window  with  the  king, 
who  immediately  conducted  her  all  round  the*  apartments 
and  thence  to  the  ground  floor,  where  they  found  the 
kitchen  and  pantry  furnished  with  everything  that  was 
necessary.  All  these  marvels  only  made  good  King 
Petard  afraid;  but  the  queen,  who  guessed  whence  it  had 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  365 

all  come,  had  not  the  same  feeling,  but  dared  not  say 
anything  about  it.  They  were  in  this  state  when  the 
seneschal,  who  had  been  looking  for  them  for  an  hour  in 
the  king's  house,  entered  this,  more  in  the  way  of  the 
duty  of  his  situation  than  in  the  hope  of  finding  their 
majesties  there;  he  too  knew  not  what  to  think  of  a 
house  built  in  a  single  night;  and  although  he  was  less 
fearful  than  his  son-in-law,  he  only  began  to  take  cour- 
age when  he  found  himself  in  company  with  them.  The 
king,  for  his  part,  was  glad  enough  to  see  him  come  in; 
and,  each  taking  an  arm  of  the  queen,  they  went  over 
the  house  a  second  time  from  top  to  bottom,  and  all  over 
the  gardens.)) 

Everybody  argued  a  good  deal  on  the  singularity  of 
this  occurrence;  some  were  of  opinion  that  their  majes- 
ties were  very  bold  to  reside  in  a  house  built  by  fairies, 
and  so  run  the  risk  of  being  tormented  by  them;  others, 
on  the  contrary,  held  that  they  did  quite  right,  and  that 
it  was  to  be  wished  that  all  the  old  houses  in  the  king- 
dom were  rebuilt  in  a  similar  manner.  As  one  is  easily 
reconciled  to  comfort  and  to  novelties,  after  having 
talked  a  good  deal  no  more  was  said  about  it;  and  the 
king  gradually  grew  as  accustomed  to  his  new  house  as 
though  he  had  lived  in  it  all  his  life.  Thus  the  question 
of  the  tax  was  no  longer  discussed;  quietness  returned 
to  the  kingdom  of  Petard,  and  union  once  more  existed 
between  the  high  crown  officers.  The  poor  architect 
alone  had  half  a  mind  to  hang  himself,  but  was  at  Jast 
contented  with  wishing  all  genii  and  fairies  at  the  bottom 
of  the  sea,  for  interfering  with  his  employment,  calling 
them  a  hundred  times  magicians  and  sorcerers. 

'While  the  Fairy  of  the  Fields  was  bringing  about  all 
these  wonders,  she  observed  in  Gilletta  so  much  respect 
for  the  fairies,  and  so  much  gratitude  to  her,  that,  feel- 
ing herself  more  and  more  interested  in  that  queen's  wel- 
fare, she  could  not  refuse  to  make  a  longer  stay  at  hor 
court  than  she  had  originally  intended.  She  reassured 
the  queen  also  of  her  children's  fate,  and  explained  to 
her  their  punishment,  and  her  reasons  for  proceeding  to 
this  extremity;  but  as  true  and  tender  friendship  knows 
how  to  disguise  the  most  interesting  things  when  a 
knowledge  of  them  would  afflict  th*e  person  loved,  she 
carefully  concealed  from  her  the  abduction  of  her  dear 


266  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

Septimus,  and  the  anxiety  she  felt  for  him  herself;  then, 
having  recommended  to  her  confidence,  patience,  and 
discretion,  if  she  wished  to  attain  happiness,  she  quitted 
her  with  regret,  to  return  to  her  government  of  the  Isle 
of  Bambine. 

On  her  arrival  there  she  was  immediately  informed  of 
an  event  of  a  nature  unheard-of  since  the  establishment 
of  the  island.  The  senior  nurse,  who,  during  the  fairy's 
absence,  had  performed  the  duties  of  governess,  stated  to 
her  that  some  obstinate  and  unruly  children,  who  had 
been  forgiven  upon  several  occasions,  assisted  by  their 
friends  the  dolls,  had  revolted,  and  had  expressed  their 
determination  of  no  longer  obeying  their  nurses;  and 
that  the  spirit  of  rebellion  had  grown  to  such  an  extent 
in  a  short  time,  that  its  course  had  been  with  much  diffi- 
culty arrested;  that  she  had,  therefore,  been  compelled 
to  exert  all  her  authority,  and  had  begun  by  imprisoning 
the  dolls  in  boxes;  and  that  as  to  the  children,  she  had 
condemned  some  to  have  nothing  but  dry  bread  to  eat 
for  a  fortnight;  others  to  wear  their  nightcaps  in  the 
daytime  for  a  month,  and  some  even  to  be  imprisoned 
between  four  chairs,  for  two  hours  on  each  day,  until 
they  had  publicly  asked  for  pardon.  The  fairy  highly 
approved  of  the  senior  nurse's  conduct,  and  praised  her 
very  much  for  her  zeal;  but,  as  an  example  was  necessary, 
for  the  maintenance  of  order,  she  condemned  the  most 
mutinous  of  the  rebels  to  a  transformation  of  a  hundred 
years,  as  punches,  judies,  and  dancing  dolls;  sending 
them  into  different  parts  of  the  world  to  work  for  their 
livelihood  as  puppets,  and  thus  to  minister  to  the  amuse- 
ment of  all  good  little  girls  and  boys,  and  to  serve  as 
sights  for  the  people.  She  proceeded  to  this  extremity 
with  the  less  regret,  as  she  was  informed  that  her  six 
favorites  had  taken  but  a  small  part  in  the  rebellion. 
Charmed  with  the  alteration  which  thus  began  to  appear 
in  them,  she  made  them  come  before  her,  and,  speaking 
to  the  tips  of  their  noses  (for  she  could  see  no  more  of 
them),  she  reprimanded  them,  in  terms  rather  mild  than 
severe,  and  dismissed  them  with  a  promise  of  her  friend- 
ship and  rewards,  if  she  should,  in  the  sequel,  have 
reason  to  be  satisfied  with  their  conduct. 

Though  this  event,  and  her  duty,  did  not  allow  her 
absence  from  a  place  where,  indeed,  her  presence  seemed 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


267 


so  necessary, 
yet  she  could 
not  long  con- 
tain her  feel- 
ings on  behalf 
of  little  Sep- 
timus, and  her 
impatience  to 
,hear  news  of 
him.  So  soon, 
therefore,  as 
she  thought 
her  little  peo- 
ple could  go 
on  tolerably 

well  without  her,  she  depart- 
ed, with  the  hope  of  satisfy- 
ing her  curiosity,  and  of  grat- 
ifying her  fondness  for  the 
young  prince.  That 
she  might  not  be  per- 
ceived by  the  genii  and 
fairies,  who  are  contin- 
ually traversing  the 
middle  region  of  the 
air,  she  took  to  her  lit- 
tle post-chaise,  which 
she  carefully  closed  on 
all  sides,  providing 
herself  with  her  wand 
and  other  articles  of 
fairyism,  above  all  not 
forgetting  the  invisible 
water;  then,  having 
ordered  her  six  fly- 
ing lizards  to  use 
great  speed,  she  ar- 
rived in  a  few  minutes 
at  a  short  distance 
from  the  inaccessible 
island.  She  alighted, 


268  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

dismissed  her  chaise,  and  rubbing  herself  over  with  the 
water  just  named,  she  overcame,  without  being  seen,  ob- 
stacles which,  but  for  this  liquid,  would'have  successfully 
opposed  her  entrance.  Gangan  had,  in  order  to  prevent 
genii  and  fairies  from  entering  her  island,  surrounded  it 
with  a  treble  inclosure,  formed  by  a  rapid  torrent,  the 
waters  of  which  rolled  over  rocks  which  they  had  split 
with  their  violence,  tearing  up  trunks  of  trees  and  dash- 
ing the  fragments  in  the  waves.  The  shores  of  this  isle 
were  defended  by  twenty-four  dragons  of  enormous  size; 
and  the  flames  which  they  vomited  at  the  sight  of  fairies 
or  genii  reached  to  the  clouds,  and  uniting,  formed  an 
impenetrable  wall  of  fire.  ^ 

The  Fairy  of  the  Fields  had  hardly  been  seeking^)r 
intelligence  as  to  the  fate  of  Septimus  above  an  hour, 
when  chance  afforded  her  the  most  favorable  opportunity 
in  the  world;  she  saw  coming  toward  her  Gangan,  ac- 
companied by  a  Dive,  for  she  was  only  served  by  evil 
genii,  and  her  countenance  appeared  inflamed  with  pas- 
sion, and  she  spoke  very  vehemently.  Profiting  by  her 
invisibility,  the  Fairy  of  the  Fields  resolved  to  listen, 
when  she  heard  Gangan  speak  to  her  companion  nearly 
as  follows:  "Yes,  my  dear  Barbarec,  you  see  me  in  de- 
spair; I  am  about  to  lose  forever  the  largest  kingdom  of 
the  universe.  The  ungrateful  mother  of  Petard  has  died 
without  even  a  desire  to  be  reconciled  with  me;  nor  is 
that  all,  she  has  bound  her  subjects  by  an  oath,  not  only 
never  to  receive  at  my  hands  a  successor  to  her  crown, 
but  even  to  restore  the  throne  to  her  son,  or  to  one  of 
her  grandsons.  I  tried  to  win  the  people  by  my  kind- 
ness, but  found  everywhere  an  inveterate  hatred  against 
me;  they  refused  my  gifts,  which  they  looked  on  as 
equally  perfidious  and  treasonable,  and  they  have  decided 
by  a  unanimous  and  formal  resolution  on  following  the 
queen's  direction,  by  depriving  me  of  a  throne  on  which 
J  had  reckoned  to  place  my  niece.  It  shall  not,  however, 
be  long  ere  these  ungrateful  people  feel  the  effects  of  my 
just  anger;  and,  to  begin  with  the  principal  causes  of  my 
disgrace,  take  from  my  stables  one  of  my  largest  griffins, 
fly  to  the  Isle  of  Bambine,  seize  the  brothers  and  sisters 
of  Septimus,  and  bring  them  here.  Myself  will  under- 
take to  carry  off  Petard  and  Gilletta,  and  when  they  are 
brought  together  I  will  transform  the  king  and  his  queen 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  269 

into  rabbits,  and  their  children  into  terriers.  If  a  spark 
of  pity  which  I  yet  feel  for  Septimus  should  abandon  me, 
I  will  not  answer  that  he  also  do  not  feel  the  effects  of 
my  vengeance.  Hasten,  however,  to  prepare  everything 
for  the  execution  of  my  plans,  and  let  us  remember,  my 
dear  Barbarec,  that,  having  abandoned  the  laws  of  the 
Peris  for  those  of  the  Dives,  we  are  become  the  enemies 
of  fairies  and  of  mankind,  and  that  we  must  neglect 
nothing  to  overwhelm  them  all  with  the  weight  of  our 
hatred/'  The  Fairy  of  the  Fields  could  not  hear  this 
discourse  without  shuddering;  she  remained  for  some 
time  motionless;  but  recalling  her  senses,  and  feeling  of 
whn^  consequence  it  was  not  to  stay  any  longer  in  this 
teriible  abode,  she  hastened  "to  implore  the  powerful  as- 
sistance of  the  queen  of  the  fairies.  She  immediately 
left  the  island,  which  she  had  scarcely  done  when  the 
sky  became  obscured,  the  earth  trembled,  and  dreadful 
groanings,  accompanied  with  thunder  and  lightning, 
seemed  to  announce  the  speedy  destruction  of  the  uni- 
verse. Shortly  afterward  the  air  was  restored  to  calm- 
ness; but  the  day  growing  still  darker  and  darker,  a  new 
spectacle,  as  terrible  as  the  preceding,  succeeded.  The 
twenty-four  dragons  who  guarded  the  approaches  to  the 
isle,  making  frightful  bowlings,  lanced  against  each 
other  streams  of  flame,  and  strove  in  fiery  combat,  which 
concluded  by  consuming  them  all.  Day  again  reap- 
peared, and  where  the  torrent  and  island  had  been,  noth- 
ing was  to  be  seen  but  a  dry  and  arid  rock,  while  from  its 
summit  there  flew  a  black  ostrich,  carrying  on  its  back 
Prince  Septimus  and  the  little  princess,  Gangan's  niece. 
These  prodigies  had  nob  so  much  overcome  the  Fairy  of 
the  Fields,  but  that,  moved  with  the  situation  of  these 
amiable  children  and  her  kindness  inclining  her  to  follow 
them,  she  immediately  set  out  with  so  much  diligence 
that,  in  a  short  time,  she  overtook  the  black  ostrich. 
Her  first  impulse  was  to  take  from  it  the  prince  and 
princess;  but  observing  that  the  bird  was  directing  its 
flight  toward  the  Fortunate  Island,  she  contented  herself 
with  following  and  watching  it  at  a  short  distance. 

Indeed,  in  a  short  time  the  ostrich  alighted  on  that 
island,  and  directed  its  steps  towarc^  the  queen  of  the 
fairies  herself.  This  sovereign  was  seated  at  the  en- 
trance of  her  palace  on  a  golden  throne  enriched  witli 


270 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


jewels,  surrounded  by  her  twelve  fairies,  the  twenty-four 
black  genii  who  have  been  before  mentioned,  and  by  a 
numerous  court.  The  moment  the  ostrich  approached 
the  throne  the  Fairy  of  the  Fields  seized  the  prince  and 
princess  and  placed  them  at  the  queen's  feet;  when 
Gangan  resumed  her  original  shape  and  proper  character, 
confusion,  malice,  and  despair  were  depicted  by  turns  on 
her  countenance,  and  she  was  in  the  most  cruel  suspense 


as  to  what  was  about  to  happen,  when  the  queen  spoke 
to  her  in  these  words:  "The  malignity  of  your  mind  and 
the  perversity  of  your  heart  have,  I  see,  prevented  your 
making  a  good  use  of  that  power  which  I  bestowed  upon 
you.  Very  far  from  repairing  your  first  faults  by  the 
gift  of  Grand  Fairyism,  which  the  laws  and  my  kindness 
vouchsafed  to  you,  you  have-,  on  the  contrary,  abused 
that,  and  as  this  abuse  now  calls  for  my  justice  upon 
you,  receive  at  once  the  punishment  due  to  your  mis- 
deeds. You  will  lose  for  two  years  all  power  as  a  fairy, 
and  assuming  during  that  period  the  shape  of  a  stork, 
you  shall  be  the  slave  of  my  humblest  genii."  With 
these  words  the  queen  touched  her  with  her  scepter,  and 
aH  the  fairies,  having  held  over  her  their  wands  in  to'cen 


OLD,  OLD  FAIR7  TALES.  271 

of  approbation,  they  pronounced  certain  words,  during 
which  the  unfortunate  Gangan  became  a  stork,  and  im- 
mediately went  to  join  the  other  animals  of  the  species. 

The  queen  then  summoned  the  Fairy  Judicious,  and 
confided  the  young  prince  and  princess  to  her  care  while 
they  should  remain  at  her  court,  particularly  advising 
her  to  form  their  hearts  by  cultivating  their  minds;  she 
embraced  Septimus  and  Feliciana  (which  was  the  prin- 
cess' name),  and  these  amiable  children,  penetrated  with 
joy  and  gratitude,  quitted  her  arms  with  sorrow  for  those 
of  their  guardian  Judicious. 

They  profited  so  well  by  their  education  during  the 
two  years  they  resided  with  the  queen  of  the  fairies, 
that  they  obtained  the  love  and  admiration  of  all  her 
court.  When  the  one  had  reached  the  age  of  fourteen, 
and  the  other  of  twelve  years,  the  queen  of  the  fairies 
resolved  to  unite  them  in  marriage,  and  to  restore  them 
with  the  brothers  and  sisters  of  Septimus  to  King  Petard 
and  his  Qv.een  Gilletta;  but  at  the  same  time  she  in- 
formed the  Fairy  of  the  Fields  that,  as  an  example  to 
Septimus  and  Feliciana,  she  had  resolved  that  the  rebel- 
lious children,  although  now  perfectly  cured  of  their 
faults,  should  only  resume  their  proper  shapes  in  the 
presence  of  the  newly  married  couple,  and  when  they 
should  have  arrived  at  the  king  their  father's  palace. 
Then  having  determined  the  time  of  their  departure, 
she  confided  to  the  Fairy  of  the  Fields  the  six  children 
of  whom  she  had  been  so  careful,  and  having  ordered  her 
to  choose  for  them  husbands  and  wives,  she  summoned 
the  Fairy  Judicious,  and  charged  her  to  accompany  the 
Prince  Septimus  and  his  princess.  These  amiable  chil- 
dren shed  tears  on  quitting  her  to  whom  they  owed  all 
their  happiness,  and  the  generous  queen,  embracing  them 
tenderly,  promised  them  her  friendship,  and  saw  them 
depart  with  much  sorrow. 

They  lost  no  time  in  repairing  to  the  court  of  Petard, 
where  that  king  had  been  for  some  days  extremely  em- 
barrassed. His  motber  the  queen,  after  languishing  for 
many  years,  had  at  last  vacated  the  throne,  and  deputies 
had  been  dispatched  from  her  kingdom  inviting  her  son 
to  accept  the  crown.  They  had  already  asked  for  an 
audience,  and  Petard  was  greatly  puzzled  as  t-o  the  man- 
ner in  which  it  should  be  granted.  He  was  uncertain 


272  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

whether  he  ought  to  receive  them  standing  or  seated, 
on  horseback  or  on  foot,  and  to  debate  this  point  the 
council  was  assembled,  where  everybody  decided  as  usual; 
the  seneschal,  Carbuncle,  maintained  that  the  king  ought 
to  be  standing,  asserting  that  he  had  heard  that  the  Em- 
peror Charlemagne  and  the  twelve  peers  of  France  were 
always  standing,  and  that  they  never  seated  themselves 
except  to  eat  and  to  sleep.  The  solicitor-general  opined 
that  his  majesty  should  be  seated,  because  kings  and 
judges  ought  always  to  be  at  their  ease,  and  that,  except 
a  bed,  there  was  nothing  so  convenient  as  an  armchair. 
The  chamberlain,  on  the  contrary,  was  of  opinion  that 
the  king  should  appear  on  horseback,  alleging  that  that 
was  the  most  noble  attitude  for  kings,  inasmuch  as  their 
statues  always  thus  represented  them;  each  of  the  coun- 
cilors maintained  as  usual  his  own  opinions;  they 
shouted,  they  quarreled,  and  would  perhaps  even  have 
gone  further,  if  the  king,  raising  his  voice  above  theirs, 
had  not  said:  ''Do  you  intend  to  leave  off?  There  is 
surely  noise  enough  about  a  chair  more  or  less!  As  I 
shall  meet  them,  so  they  shall  see  me;  and  as  they  find 
me,  so  they  must  take  me,  that  is  all  I  know  about  the 
matter;  but  as  to  becoming  their  king,  many  thanks  to 
them,  I  should  go  mad  with  all  the  cares  of  royalty 
which  they  tell  me  I  should  have  on  my  mind.  So  long 
flourish  my  little  kindgom;  since  I  am  well  off  with  that 
I  will  hold  fast  to  it;  and  they  must  accommodate  them- 
selves as  well  as  they  can;  however,  as  they  wish  to  have 
an  audience,  an  audience  they  must  have,  so  let  them  be 
summoned/'  The  councilors  then  retired,  each  mur- 
muring that  the  king  had  not  taken  his  advice,  and 
blaming  him  for  always  doing  as  he  thought  proper  for 
himself. 

While  they  went  to  fetch  the  deputies  to  the  presence, 
his  majesty,  thinking  himself  wiser  than  his  council,  put 
on  his  royal  clothes,  and  seated  himself  at  the  foot  of  his 
bed,  of  which  he  had  had  the  curtains  arranged  in  fes- 
toons around  the  posts;  he  held  in  one  hand  his  scepter, 
in  the  other  his  cap  and  fringed  gloves;  the  queen  was  at 
his  right  hand,  on  a  chair  covered  with  blue  serge  and 
ornamented  with  large  gilt  nails,  with  her  women  behind 
her.  On  the  left  of  the  king  were  his  high  officers,  who 
were  nearly  all  laughing  in  their  sleeves  at  the  singular 
figure  of  their  kin,g. 


OLD,  OLD  PA1RY  TALKS.  273 

When  all  was  arranged  the  door  was  opened,  and  the 
deputies  entered,  followed  by  all  the  people  of  King 
Petard's  little  state;  they  made  him  three  deep  salaams, 
which  the  king  and  queen  acknowledged  by  three  others 
as  profound,  and  were  about  to  commence  their  harangue, 
when  a  woman  of  majestic  figure  entered,  leading  a 
young  man  about  fourteen  or  fifteen  years  of  age,  and 
addressing  herself  to  Gilletta.  thus  spoke:  "Queen, 
everything  comes  in  time  to  him  who  can  wait.  Your 
misfortunes  are  over,  and  your  destiny  has  changed  its 
course.  Behold  the  prince  your  son,  whom  a  superior 
power  has  protected  from  the  effects  of  Gangan's  wicked- 
ness; the  perfidious  fairy  can  no  longer  annoy  him,  her 
malice  has  just  been  confounded.  Receive,  at  last,  your 
dear  son  Septimus;  and  you,  deputies,  render  homage  to 
the  lawful  successor  to  the  throne  of  your  kindgom." 
The  king,  acknowledging  his  son,  took  him  in  his  arms 
and  kissed  him  a  thousand  times;  then  hastening  to  the 
fairy,  he  embraced  her  without  paying  any  regard  to  her 
age  or  character;  he  did  the  same  with  Carbuncle,  the 
solicitor-general,  the  chamberlain  and  all  who  were 
around  him;  then,  taking  off  his  royal  mantle,  he  put  it 
upon  Septimus,  gave  him  his  scepter,  seated  him  at  the 
foot  of  the  bed,  and  began  to  shout  with  all  his  might: 
"Long  live  the  king!"  which  was  immediately  repeated 
by  the  nobles,  and  taken  up  by  all  the  people,  to  whom 
the  king  kept  crying  out:  "Shout  away,  you  there,  shout 
away!"  Meanwhile,  the  queen,  penetrated  with  joy  and 
gratitude,  had  fallen  at  the  fairy's  feet,  embracing  her 
and  weeping;  when  the  fairy,  having  raised  her,  signified 
that  she  wished  to  speak.  Everybody  was  immediately 
silent,  excepting  the  king,  whose  joy  was  so  great  that  he 
neither  saw  nor  heard  anything,  until  at  last,  finding  him- 
self out  of  breath,  he  also  was  quieted,  and  the  fairy 
spoke: 

"What  you  see,"  said  she,  "is  only  a  portion  of  the 
favors  which  your  friend,  the  Fairy  of  the  Fields,  be- 
stows upon  you:  she  gives  you,  with  the  prince,  a 
young  and  amiable  princess,  whom  the  queen  of  the 
fairies  has  destined  to  be  the  wife  of  your  king.  If  the 
qualities  of  her  mind,  and  the  beauty  of  her  person,  are 
some  slight  guarantee  for  the  happiness  of  this  favored 
couple,  the  mildness  of  her  character  and  the  goodness 


274  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

of  her  heart,  which  I  have  taken  pains  to  form,  may 
assure  to  you  its  duration.  Confirm,  then,  this  happy 
union,  and  thus  deserve  the  Fairy  of  the  Fields'  power- 
ful protection,  as  well  as  that  of " 

The  king  would  hear  no  more,  but  taking  the  hands  of 
the  prince  and  princess:  "Done!"  cried  he,  "I  marry 
them  with  all  my  heart,  and  give  to  them  all  my  king- 
doms and  my  revenues;  as  to  my  other  children,  I  shall 
trouble  myself  no  more  about  them;  our  friend,  this  good 
lady  of  the  fields,  will  not  allow  them  to  want  for  any- 
thing; so  let  us  have  the  wedding  and  rejoice;  you  shall 
all  dine  with  me,  though,  by  the  b^e,  I  do  not  know  that 
I  shall  have  too  much  to  give  you;  but,  as  my  wife  says, 
'everything  comes  to  him  who  can  wait/  Now,  father- 
in-law,"  he  continued,  turning  to  Carbuncle,  "go  to  the 
kitchen,  have  all  killed  that  is  in  my  poultry-yard,  and, 
above  all,  let  us  have  good  cheer,  for  I  would  have  this 
affair  well  spoken  of." 

The  seneschal  obeyed;  but  as  he  was  crossing  the  din- 
ing-room he  perceived  a  table  laid  with  twenty-four 
dishes  of  the  best  meats.  He  went  no  further,  but 
quickly  returned  to  relate  to  the  king  and  queen  what 
he  had  just  seen.  Everybody,  anxious  to  behold  this 
fairy  festival,  went  immediately  to  the  dining-room,  not, 
however,  without  some  fear,  and,  consequently,  without 
much  ceremony.  The  sight  surprised  them  greatly  at 
first;  they  hesitated  at  tasting  the  food,  but  after  awhile, 
taking  heart,  began  to  think  it  looked  very  nice,  and  the 
king,  to  whom  all  this  cost  nothing,  set  them  the  exam- 
ple, by  eating  with  all  his  heart,  and  drinking  bumpers 
every  time  the  bottle  came  round  to  him.  It  is  said  that 
he  was  not  sparing  of  his  old  stories  and  bons-mots,  but 
that  although  the  good  man  often  repeated  them,  and  al- 
ways in  the  same  terms,  they  were  always  followed  by 
shouts  of  laughter. 

When  they  had  been  at  table  about  two  hours  violins 
were  heard  in  the  audience-chamber;  and  as  they  had  all 
eaten  and  drank  enough,  they  willingly  rose  from  table* 
The  king,  in  high  good  humor,  wished  for  nothing  better 
than  a  dance,  and  insisted  on  opening  the  ball  with  the 
young  queen,  calling  for  his  favorite  dance,  which  re- 
sembled "Sir  Roger  de  Paris."  The  violins  struck  up, 
e  began;  but  after  putting  them  out  and  telling 


Olt),  OLD  FAIRT  TALE&  275 

them  they  did  not  know  the  figure,  he  gave  up  in  despair, 
and  asked  the  young  prince  and  princess  to  dance  a  min- 
uet, which  they  did  with  admirable  grace.  They  were 
just  performing  the  last  obeisance,  when  six  puppets 
entered  the  room  finely  dressed,  three  as  Koman  knights, 
and  three  as  Roman  ladies;  each  of  these  six  puppets  had 
by  its  side  the  visible  tip  of  a  nose,  and  the  whole  entree  was 
conducted  by  a  lady,  who  was,  however,  taken  little 
notice  of,  so  much  attention  did  the  spectacle  of  the 
puppets  attract.  They  all  made  room  to  receive  them, 
and  the  puppets  immediately  performed  a  pas  de  douze, 
in  which  the  six  tips  of  the  noses  figured  admirably. 
The  ballet  over,  they  arranged  themselves  in  a  ring,  in 
the  same  order  they  had  observed  on  entering.  Their 
conductress  placed  herself  in  the  center,  touched  the  six 
tips  of  the  noses  with  the  end  of  her  wand,  and  imme- 
diately there  appeared  in  their  places  three  punchinellos 
and  three  dancing  dolls. 

"Very  good,  very  good,"  said  the  king,  "all  that  will 
do  for  my  grandchildren,  and  provided  they  cost  me 
nothing  to  keep  and  clothe,  I  will  take  care  of  them  with 
pleasure  till  the  grandchildren  come." 

"Not  so  fast,  sire,"  replied  the  lady;  "have  patience; 
*everything  comes  in  time  to  him  who  can  wait.'  ; 

Immediately  the  twelve  puppets  began  to  dance  again, 
and  the  spectators  were  in  the  highest  degree  astonished 
to  see  them  change  perceptibly,  and  gradually  take 
another  face  and  new  dress. 

"Mercy  on  us!"  cried  the  king,  "why,  there  are 
Harry,  Dick  and  George,  my  dear!  why,  surely  there  are 
Josephine,  Clementina  and  Arabella,  love!  no,  really  I 
cannot  believe  it.  Oh!  by  my  scepter,  but  this  is  ad- 
mirable!" Then  speaking  to  the  conductress:  "Hold," 
said  he  to  her,  "I  will  bet  my  cap  and  royal  mantle 
that  you  are  our  friend,  the  lady  of  the  fields;  i'  faith, 
you  are  worth  your  weight  in  gold,  and  here  are  our 
children,  all  ready  shod  and  clad,  and  as  big  as  their 
father  and  mother;  but  how  are  we  to  get  them  married?" 

"I  will  manage  that,"  replied  the  Fairy  of  the  Fields, 
for  it  was  herself,  "and  it  shall  be  done  immediately." 

At  these  words  the  king,  beside  himself  with  joy,  took 
her  hand,  paid  her  I  know  not  how  many  compliments 
after  his  fashion,  and  seated  her  near  Gilletta,  to  whom 


276  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

he  cried:  "This  is  the  lady  of  the  fields,  and  our  very 
good  friend." 

The  queen,  overcome  by  her  feelings,  gave  herself  up 
completely  to  all  her  gratitude  to  the  fairy,  and  all  her 
tenderness  to  her  children.  The  fairy  then  introduced 
to  Gilletta  the  unknown  princes  and  princesses,  who  were 
with  her,  and  proposed  them  in  marriage  with  her  six 
children.  The  king  and  queen  consented  immediately; 
all  who  were  present  applauded  the  fairy's  choice,  and 
the  deputies  proclaimed  Septimus  and  Feliciana  king  and 
queen.  The  seven  marriages  were  celebrated  in  a  man- 
ner worthy  of  the  wisdom  of  the  Fairy  Judicious,  and 
the  noble  simplicity  of  the  Fairy  of  the  Fields.  Septi- 
mus gave  to  each  of  his  brothers  and  brothers-in-law  the 
government  of  the  largest  and  most  wealthy  provinces  of 
his  kingdom;  and  the  seven  princes  set  out  with  their 
wives,  and  accompanied  by  the  fairies,  who  only  quitted 
each  on  his  arrival  at  their  several  capitals.  They  there 
gave  them  instructions  for  the  government  of  their  fam- 
ilies and  provinces:  and,  after  loading  them  with  marks 
of  kindness  and  generosity,  returned  each  to  her  own 
duties. 

As  for  Petard  and  Gilletta,  their  children's  fortune 
made  them  neither  ambitious  nor  jealous,  nor  did  it 
change  their  ways  of  thinking.  The  pomp  and  majesty 
of  a  grand  queen  did  not  agree  with  Gilletta's  simplicity; 
while  Petard's  character  and  genius  were  not  suited  to 
the  cares  of  a  large  kingdom;  and  they  would  not  have 
exchanged,  the  one  his  seneschal,  his  game  at  piquet, 
and  his  kitchen-garden;  the  other,  her  spinning-wheel, 
her  dairy,  and  the  friendship  of  the  Fairy  of  the  Fields, 
for  all  the  grandeur  in  the  world. 


PRINCE    DESIRE  AND   PRINCESS 
MIGNONETTA. 

THERE  was  once  upon  a  time  a  king  who  was  passion- 
ately fond  of  a  princess;  but  she  could  not  be  married 
because  she  was  enchanted.  He  went  to  consult  a  fairy, 
to  ascertain  what  he  ought  to  do  to  make  the  princess 
love  him.  The  fairy  said  to  him:  "You  know  that  the 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALKS.  %tf 

princess  has  a  large  cat,  of  which  she  is  very  fond;  well, 
she  can  marry  that  person  only  who  can  succeed  in  tread- 
ing on  her  cat's  tail." 

The  prince  said  to  himself:  "That  will  not  be  very  dif- 
ficult to  accomplish;"  and  he  quitted  the  fairy,  deter- 
mined rather  to  crush  the  cat's  tail  than  to  fail  in  tread- 
ing on  it.  He  hastened  to  his  mistress'  palace;  Master 


Puss  came  to  meet  him  very  consequentially,  as  was  his 
wont;  the  king  lifted  up  his  foot,  but  when  he  thought 
to  have  put  it  on  the  cat's  tail,  Puss  turned  round  so 
quickly  that  he  trod  on  nothing  but  the  floor.  He  was  a 
week  trying  to  tread  on  this  fatal  tail,  which  appeared  to 
be  full  of  quicksilver,  for  it  was  continually  moving. 
But  at  last  the  king  had  the  good  fortune  to  surprise 
Master  Puss  one  day,  when  he  had  his  head  in  a  jar  in 
which  a  rat  had  taken  shelter,  and  trod  upon  his  tail 
with  all  his  weight.  Puss  turned,  mewing  horribly,  and 
immediately  took  the  shape  of  a  tall  man,  who,  looking 
at  the  prince  with  eyes  full  of  anger,  said  to  him: 

"You  may  now  marry  the  princess,  since  you  have  dis- 
solved the  enchantment  which  prevented  yon;  but  I  will 
be  revenged.  You  shall  have  a  son  who  will  always  be 
unfortunate,  until  the  time  when  he  shall  become  aware 
that  his  nose  is  too  long,  and  if  you  take  any  umbrage  at 
what  I  threaten  you  shall  immediately  be  put  to  death." 

Although  the  king  was  frightened  at  the  sight  of  this 
tall  man,  who  was  an  enchanter,  he  could  not  help  laugh- 


278  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

ing  at  his  threat.  "If  my  son's  nose  should  be  too 
long,"  said  he  to  himself,  "unless  he  should  be  either 
blind  or  silly  he  will  certainly  be  able  to'  see  or  feel  it." 

When  the  enchanter  had  disappeared  the  king  went  to 
find  the  princess,  who  consented  to  marry  him;  however, 
he  did  not  live  long  with  her,  for  he  died  eight  months 
after  the  wedding.  A  month  after  his  death  the  queen 
gave  birth  to  a  young  prince,  who  was  called  "Desire." 
He  had  the  finest  large  blue  eyes  in  the  world,  and  a 
pretty  little  mouth;  but  his  nose  was  so  large  that  it  cov- 
ered half  his  face.  The  queen  was  inconsolable  when  she 
saw  this  large  nose;  but  the  ladies  who  were  with  her 
told  her  that  the  nose  was  not  so  large  as  it  appeared  to 
her  to  be;  that  it  was  a  Roman  nose,  and  that  history 
averred  that  all  heroes  had  large  noses.  The  queen, 
who  loved  her  son  to  excess,  was  charmed  with  this  dis- 
course, and  by  dint  of  continually  looking  at  Desire,  his 
nose  no  longer  appeared  to  be  so  very  long.  The  prince 
was  brought  up  very  carefully,  and  as  soon  as  he  could 
speak  all  kinds  of  shocking  stories  were  told  him  of  peo- 
ple who  had  short  noses.  No  one  was  allowed  to  remain 
near  him  whose  nose  did  not  a  little  resemble  his  own, 
and  the  courtiers,  to  show  their  respect  to'the  queen  and 
her  son,  pulled  their  children's  noses  several  times  a  day 
with  a  view  of  lengthening  them;  they  had,  however,  a 
difficult  task,  for  their  sons  appeared  to  have  hardly  any 
nose  at  all  near  Prince  Desire's.  When  he  became  old 
enough  to  understand  it  he  was  instructed  in  history, 
and  whenever  any  great  prince  or  handsoms  princess  was 
mentioned  to  him,  he  or  she  was  always  spoken  of  as  hav- 
ing a  long  nose.  The  room  was  hung  round  with  pic- 
tures, in  which  all  the  figures  had  large  noses,  and  De- 
sire grew  so  accustomed  to  regard  length  of  nose  as  an 
ornament  that  he  would  not  for  an  empire  have  parted 
with  an  atom  of  his.  When  he  had  reached  the  age  of 
twenty  it  was  thought  expedient  for  him  to  marry,  and 
the  portraits  of  various  princesses  were  submitted  to  him. 
He  was  in  raptures  with  that  of  Mignonetta,  the  daugh- 
ter of  a  great  king,  and  heiress  to  several  kingdoms;  "of 
the  kingdoms,  however,  Desire  thought  not  at  all,  he 
was  so  much  struck  with  her  beauty.  The  Princess 
Mignonetta,  although  he  was  thus  charmed  with  her,  had 
a  little  turned-up  nose,which  harmonized  admirably  with 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  279 

her  other  features,  but  which  very  much  perplexed  the 
courtiers.  They  had  acquired  such  a  habit  of  ridiculing 
small  noses  that  they  sometimes  could  not  forbear  laugh- 
ing at  that  of  the  princess;  but  Desire  would  not  suffer 
a  jest  on  this  subject,  and  he  banished  two  courtiers 
from  his  presence  who  dared  to  make  insinuations 
against  Mignonetta's  nose.  The  others,  warned  by  their 
fate,  were  more  cautious,  and  there  was  one  who  said  to 
the  prince  that  in  truth  a  man  could  not  be  pleasing  who 
had  not  got  a  large  nose,  but  that  it  was  not  the  same  in 
respect  to  woman;  for  a  wise  man  who  spoke  Greek  had 
informed  him  that  he  had  read  in  an  old  manuscript  that 
the  fair  Cleopatra  had  the  end  of  her  nose  turned  up. 
The  prince  made  a  magnificent  present  to  the  courtier 
who  told  him  this  good  news,  and  dispatched  ambassadors 
to  demand  Mignonette  in  marriage.  His  proposal  was 
accepted,  and  he  was  so  anxious  to  see  her  that  he  went 
more  than  nine  miles  on  the  road  to  meet  her;  but  as  he 
was  just  stepping  forward  to  kiss  her  hand  the  enchanter 
appeared,  and  carried  off  the  princess  before  his  face, 
leaving  him  quite  inconsolable. 

Desire  resolved  never  to  re-enter' his  kingdom  until  he 
had  discovered  Mignonetta.  He  would  not  allow  any  of 
his  courtiers  to  accompany  him,  and  mounting  a  good 
horse,  he  laid  the  bridle  on  his  neck  and  allowed  him  to 
choose  his  own  road.  The  horse  presently  came  to  a 
large  plain,  which  he  traversed  the  whole  day  without 
seeing  a  single  house.  Both  horse  and  rider  were  ready 
to  die  with  hunger;  at  last,  as  night  was  about  to  set  in, 
they  discovered  a  cave  in  which  a  light  was  burning. 
Desire  entered,  and  saw  a  little  old  woman,  who  ap- 
peared to  be  more  than  a  hundred  years  old.  She  put  on 
her  spectacles  to  look  at  the  prince,  but  she  was  a  long 
time  adjusting  them,  for  her  nose  was  too  short.  The 
prince  and  the  fairy  (for  it  was  a  fairy),  burst  out  laugh- 
ing as  they  looked  at  each  other  exclaiming  simulta- 
neously: "Oh!  what  a  comical  nose!" 

"Not  so  comical  as  yours/'  said  Desire;  "but,  madam, 
let  us  leave  our  noses  as  they  are,  and  have  the  goodness 
to  give  me  something  to  eat,  for  both  I  and  my  poor 
horse  are  dying  with  hunger." 

"With  all  my  heart,"  answered  the  fairy.  "Although 
your  nose  is  ridiculous,  you  are  not  the  less  the  son  of 


280  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

my  best  friend.  I  loved  the  king  your  father  like  my 
own  brother;  but  he  had  a  very  handsome  nose." 

"And  what  is  there  wanting  in  mine?v  asked  Desire. 

"Oh!  it  wants  nothing,"  answered  the  fairy;  "on  the 
contrary,  there  is  but  too  much  of  it;  but  no  matter,  a 
man  may  be  very  good  and  yet  have  too  large  a  nose.  I 
was  saying,  then,  that  I  was  your  father's  friend;  at  that 
time  he  frequently  came  to  see  me,  and  you  must  know 
that  in  those  days  I  was  very  pretty;  your  father  told  me 
so.  I  must  repeat  to  you  a  conversation  that  we  had 
together  the  last  time  he  saw  me." 

"Very  well,  madam,"  said  Desire,  "I  will  listen  to  you 
with  a  great  deal  of  pleasure  when  I  have  had  my  sup- 
per; consider,  if  you  please,  that  I  have  eaten  nothing 
to-day." 

"The  poor  child  is  right,"  said  the  fairy;  "I  did  not 
think  of  that.  I  will  prepare  your  supper,  and  while  you 
are  eating  I  will  tell  you  my  history  in  a  few  words,  for 
I  do  not  like  long  tales.  A  long  tongue  is  still  more  in- 
sufferable than  a  large  nose,  and  I  remember  when  I  was 
young  that  I  was  admired  for  not  being  a  great  talker. 
The  queen,  my  mother,  used  frequently  to  have  it  men- 
tioned to  her,  for,  such  as  you  see  me,  I  am  a  great  king's 
daughter.  My  father " 

"Your  father  ate  when  he  was  hungry,"  said  the 
prince,  interrupting  her. 

"Yes!  he  did  doubtless,"  said  the  fairy,  "and  you  also 
will  have  your  supper  in  a  moment.  I  was  merely  going 
to  tell  you  that  my  father^ " 

"But  I  will  not  listen  to  a  word  until  I  have  some- 
thing to  eat,"  said,  the  prince,  growing  angry.  He 
checked  himself,  however,  for  he  wanted  something  of 
the  fairy,  and  said:  "I  know  that  the  pleasure  I  should 
take  in  listening  to  you  would  make  me  forget  my  own 
hunger;  but  my  horse,  who  will  not  understand  you,  is  in 
need  of  some  food." 

This  compliment  made  the  fairy  bridle.  "You  shall 
wait  no  longer,"  said  she  to  Desire,  calling  her  domes- 
tics; "you  are  very  polite,  and,  in  spite  of  the  size  'of 
your  nose,  you  are  very  amiable." 

"Plague  take  the  old  woman  with  my  nose!"  said  the 
prince  to  himself;  "one  would  have  sworn  that  my 
mother  had  stolen  what  is  wanting  in  hers  to  make 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  281 

mine  with;  if  I  were  not  hungry  I  would  leave  this  prate- 
a-pace,  who  fancies  that  she  is  a  little  talker.  One  must 
be  very  stupid  not  to  perceive  one's  own  defects:  that 
comes  of  her  being  born  a  princess;  flatterers  have 
spoiled  her,  and  persuaded  her  that  she  is  a  little  talker. 

While  that  was  passing  in  the  prince's  mind,  the  serv- 
ants laid  the  table;  and  the  prince  wondered  at  the 
fairy,  who  kept  asking  them  a  thousand  questions,  solely 
to  have  the  pleasure  of  talking:  he  was  especially  sur- 
prised at  a  waiting-woman,  who,  in  everything  that  she 
saw,  praised  her  mistress  for  her  discretion.  "Egad!" 
thought  he  as  he  was  eating,  "I  am  delighted  to  have 
found  my  way  here.  This  example  demonstrates  to  me 
how  wisely  I  have  acted  in  not  listening  to  flatterers, 
who  praise  us  princes  very  shamelessly,  concealing  our 
defects  from  us  or  representing  them  to  us  as  perfec- 
tions: but  as  for  me,  I  shall  never  be  their  dupe;  I  know 
my  own  defects,  Heaven  be  thanked."  Poor  Desire  quite 
thought  he  was  right,  and  little  imagined  that  those  who 
had  praised  his  nose  had  ridiculed  it  in  their  hearts,  as 
the  waiting-woman  was  ridiculing  the  fairy;  for  the 
prince  observed  that  she  turned  her  head  aside  every  now 
and  then  to  laugh.  With  regard  to  himself,  he  did  not 
say  a  word,  but  ate  away  as  fast  as  he  could. 

"Prince,"  said  the  fairy  to  him,  when  he  began  to  be 
satisfied,  "move  a  little,  I  entreat  you;  yournose  makes 
so  large  a  shadow  that  it  prevents  me  from  seeing  what 
is  on  my  plate.  By  the  way,  with  regard  to  your  father: 
I  went  to  his  court  when  he  was  quite  a  child;  but  it  is 
forty  years  since  I  first  retired  into  this  solitude.  Tell 
me  a  little  how  things  are  going  on  at  court  now;  are  the 
ladies  still  as  fond  of  running  about?  In  my  time  they 
used  to  go  on  the  same  day  to  the  promenade,  to  the  as- 
sembly, to  the  theater,  to  the  ball.  But  how  long  your 
nose  is!  1  cannot  grow  used  to  it." 

"In  truth,  madam, "answered  Desire,  "do  not  say  any 
more  about  my  nose;  it  is  as  it  is,  and  in  what  does  it 
concern  you?  I  am  contented  with  it,  and  do  not  wisk 
that  it  was  any  shorter;  every  one  to  his  taste." 

"Oh!  I  perceive  now  I  have  hurt  your  feelings,  my 
poor  Desire,"  said  the  fairy,  "but  I  did  not  intend  to  do 
so;  on  the  contrary,  I  am  your  friend,  and  I  wish  to  do 
you  a  service;  but  notwithstanding  that  I  cannot  help 


PRINCE  DESIRE  PARTING  FROM  THE  QUEEN. 
(283) 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  283 

"being  shocked  at  your  nose;  I  will  not,  however,  men- 
tion it  to  you  again;  I  will  even  constrain  myself  to 
think  that  you  are  snub-nosed;  though,  in  truth,  there 
are  materials  enough  in  it  to  make  three  reasonable 
noses." 

Desire,  who  had  finished  his  supper,  grew  so  tired  of 
the  fairy's  tedious  prattle  about  his  nose  that  he  sprang 
on  his  horse  and  rode  away  from  the  cavern.  He  con- 
tinued his  journey;  and  wherever  he  went  he  thought 
that  everybody  was  mad,  for  everybody  talked  about  his 
nose;  nevertheless,  he  had  been  so  accustomed  to  hear  it 
asserted  that  his  nose  was  handsome  that  he  could  not 
reconcile  himself  to  the  idea  that  it  was  too  long.  The 
old  fairy,  who  wished  to  do  him  a  service  in  spite  of  him- 
self, determined  to  shut  up  Mignonetta  in  a  crystal 
palace,  and  place  this  palace  in  the  prince's  road.  De- 
sire, transported  with  joy,  strove  to  break  it;  but  he 
could  not  succeed:  in  despair,  he  wished  to  approach  near 
it  so  as  at  least  to  speak  to  the  princess,  who,  on  her 
part,  stretched  her  hand  close  to  the  crystal  wall  of  the 
palace.  He  was  very  anxious  to  kiss  her  hand,  but  turn 
his  head  which  way  he  would,  he  could  not  place  his 
mouth  near  it,  his  nose  constantly  preventing  him.  He 
then  perceived  for  the  first  time  its  extraordinary  length, 
and  feeling  all  over  it  with  his  hand:  "I  must  confess/' 
said  he,  "that  my  nose  is  too  large." 

At  the  moment  he  pronounced  those  words  the  crystal 
palace  vanished,  and  the  fairy  appeared  leading  Migno- 
netta by  the  hand,  and  saying:  "Confess  that  you  are 
greatly  obliged  to  me;  I  vainly  wished  to  speak  to  you 
about  your  nose,  but  you  would  never  have  acknowledged 
its  defect  unless  it  had  become  an  obstacle  to  your 
wishes.  In  this  way  self-love  conceals  from  us  all  the 
defects  of  our  minds  and  bodies.  In  vain  reason  en- 
deavors to  unveil  them  to  us:  we  can  never  perceive  them 
until  the  same  self-love  that  blinds  us  to  them  finds 
them  to  be  opposed  to  its  interests." 

Desire,  whose  nose  had  become  an  ordinary  nose,  prof- 
ited by  this  lesson.  He  asked  Mignonetta  to  become  his 
wife;  married  her,  and  they  became  a  sincerely  attached 
couple.  They  never  parted  without  grief  and  the  ten- 
derest  embraces;  and  in  this  union  of  affection  they  con- 
tinued till  age  and  death  crept  on  them — the  happiest  of 
kings  and  queens. 


284  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

PKINCESS   MINIKIN. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  lived  a  king  and  a  queen  who 
had  only  one  son,  in  whom  they  centered  all  their  hopes. 
He  was  fourteen  years  old  at  the  time  from  which  this 
history  commences,  and  the  queen  had  given  up  all  hopes 
of  having  any  more  children.  The  prince  was  handsome 
to  admiration,  and  learned  with  facility  all  that  was 
taught  him.  The  king  and  queen  doted  on  him,  and 
their  subjects  made  him  the  object  of  their  tenderest 
affection;  for,  though  he  knew  very  well  what  distinc- 
tion was  necessary  to  observe  toward  the  several  persons 
who  approached  him,  he  was  affable  to  all.  He  was 
called  Zirphil.  As  he  was  their  only  son,  the  king  arid 
queen  resolved  that  he  should  marry  young,  that  they 
might  hope  to  see  princes,  his  sons,  worthy  of  wearing 
their  crown,  if  unfortunately  Zirphil  should  be  taken 
from  them. 

Search  was  accordingly  made,  on  foot  and  on  horse- 
back, for  a  princess  worthy  of  the  heir-apparent:  but 
notwithstanding  a  suitable  partner  for  him  could  not  be 
found.  At  last,  after  many  inquiries  had  thus  been 
made,  the  queen  was  informed  that  a  lady,  very  closely 
veiled,  requested  a  personal  and  private  interview  with 
her  majesty,  in  order  to  confer  with  her  on  a  very  im- 
portant affair.  The  queen  hastened  to  her  throne  to  re- 
ceive her,  and  gave  orders  for  her  to  be  ushered  into  her 
presence.  The  lady,  .on  being  admitted,  walked  up  to 
the  queen  without  removing  her  large  white  veil,  which 
reached  from  her  head  to  her  feet,  and  entirely  concealed 
every  part  of  her  person.  When  she  had  arrived  at  the 
foot  of  her  throne:  "I  am  astonished,  0  queen!"  said 
she,  "that  you  have  even  dreamed  of  marrying  your  son 
without  consulting  me;  I  am  the  Fairy  Marmotta,  and  my 
name  is  too  well  known  for  you  not  to  have  heard  of  me. 
I  am  mortally  offended,  and,  as  a  commencement  of 
your  punishment,  I  command  you  to  marry  youi  son  Zir- 
phil to  a  person  whom  I  have  brought  hither  for  that 
especial  purpose."  With  these  words  she  fumbled  in 
her  pocket  and  pulled  out  a  small  toothpick  case;  this 
she  opened,  when  there  issued  from  it  a  little  enameled 
doll,  so  pretty  and  so  nicely  made  that  the  queen,  in 


PRINCE  ZIRPHIL  AND  HIS  FATHER. 
(285) 


286  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

spite  of  her  grief,  could  not  forbear  admiring  its  beauty. 
''This  is  my  god-daughter,"  continued  the  fairy,  "and  I 
have  destined  Zirphil  from  his  birth  td  be  her  husband." 

The  queen  burst  into  tears,  and  conjured  Marmotta,  by 
the  most  tender  entreaties,  not  to  expose  her  to  the 
laughter  of  her  subjects,  who  would  ridicule  her  indeed 
if  she  were  to  announce  to  them  such  a  marriage. 

"What  doyou  mean  by  ridicule,  madam?"  said  the  fairy. 
"Ah!  we  shall  see  whether  they  have  any  occasion  to 
ridicule  my  god-daughter,  and  whether  your  son  ought 
not  to  adore  her.  I  assure  you  that  she  is  worthy  of  him 
in  every  respect;  that  she  is  small  is  true,  but  she  has 
more  wit  than  all  the  people  in  your  kingdom  put  to- 
gether; and  when  you  hear  her  you  will  be  surprised 
yourself ; 'for  you  must  know  that  she  can  talk,  and  to 
some  purpose.  Come,  little  Princess  Minikin,"  said  she 
to  the  doll,  "talk  a  little  to  your  mother-in-]aw,  and 
show  her  what  you  can  do." 

Then  the  pretty  Minikin  skipped  on  to  the  queen's 
tippet,  and  complimented  her  in  so  tender  and  intelligent 
a  manner  that  the  queen  suspended  her  tears,  and  affec- 
tionately kissed  the  little  princess. 

"Here,  your  majesty,"  said  the  fairy,  "is  my  tooth- 
pick case;  you  can  replace  your  daughter-in-law  therein: 
1  wish  your  son  to  accustom  himself  to  her  society  before 
he  marries  her;  however,  I  do  not  think  it  will  require 
a  very  long  time.  Your  obedience  may  soften  my  anger; 
but  if  you  disobey  my  orders,  you,  your  husband,  your 
son  and  your  kingdom,  shall  all  feel  the  effects  of  my  re- 
sentment; and  above  all  do  not  fail  to  replace  her  very 
early  every  evening  in  the  case,  for  it  is  of  great  impor- 
tance that  she  does  not  sit  up  late." 

With  these  words  the  fairy  lifted  up  her  veil,  and  the 
queen  fainted  away  with  terror  on  perceiving  a  real  liv- 
ing marmot,  covered  with  black  hair,  and  having  a  head 
as  large  as  an  ordinary  woman.  Her  attendants  came  to 
her  assistance,  and  when  she  recovered  from  her  swoon 
she  only  saw  the  case  which  Marmotta  had  left. 

She  was  conveyed  to  bed,  and  the  king  was  informed 
of  her  indisposition;  he  hastened  to  her  apartment  in 
violent  agitation.  The  queen  desired  all  her  attendants 
to  quit  the  room,  and,  with  a  torrent  of  tears,  related 
what  had  transpired  to  his  majesty,  who  would  not  be- 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  287 

lieve  a  word  she  said  until  he  saw  her  draw  forth  the 
doll  from  her  little  case. 

"Good  Heaven!"  cried  he,  after  meditating  a  few  mo- 
ments, "is  it  possible  that  kings  are  liable  to  such  severe 
misfortunes?  Alas!  we  are  only  placed  higher  than  other 
men  to  feel  more  acutely  the  sorrow  and  misfortunes 
inseparable  from  this  life." 

"And  to  show  greater  examples  of  fortitude,  sire," 
interposed  the  doll,  in  a  soft  and  clear  voice. 

"My  dear  Minikin,"  said  the  queen,  "you  talk  like  an 
oracle." 

The  king  took  her  hand  and  kissed  it.  Finally,  after 
an  hour's  conversation  between  these  three  personages,  it 
was  agreed  that  nothing  should  as  yet  be  said  about  the 
marriage,  and  that  they  were  to  wait  until  Zirphil,  who 
was  then  absent  for  three  days  on  a  hunting  expedition, 
should  determine  to  obey  the  fairy's  orders,  which  the 
queen  undertook  to  make  known  to  him. 

Meanwhile,  the  king  and  queen  paid  the  utmost  atten- 
tion to  the  little  Minikin;  she  had  a  highly  accomplished 
mind,  she  spoke  exceedingly  well,  and  with  a  peculiarly 
lively  turn,  which  was  engaging;  however,  notwithstand- 
ing her  animation,  her  eyes  had  a  certain  motionless 
stare  which  was  lot  agreeable,  and  which  the  queen  only 
overlooked  as  she  began  to  love  the  little  princess.  She 
was,  however,  fearful  that  the  prince  might  conceive  an 
aversion  to  her  on  this  account.  More  than  a  month  had 
passed  after  Marmotta's  visit,  and  the  queen  had  not  yet 
dared  to  introduce  Zirphil  to  his  proposed  bride,  when 
one  morning  that  prince  entered  her  apartment  before 
she  had  risen,  and,  seating  himself  by  her  bedside,  spoke 
as  follows: 

"A  few  days  ago,  madam,  while  I  was  hunting,  the 
most  surprising  adventure  conceivable  befell  me,  which 
I  would  fain  have  concealed  from  you;  but  the  secret  has 
become  so  burdensome  to  me  that  I  feel  I  can  withhold 
it  from  you  no  longer. 

"It  is  now  some  days  since,  that  as  I  was  eagerly  fol- 
lowing a  wild  boar  I  became  so  absorbed  in  its  pursuit 
as  not  to  observe  that  I  had  outstripped  all  my  attend- 
ants; when,  as  I  arrived  at  the  outskirts  of  the  forest,  I 
all  at  once  saw  the  animal  precipitate  himself  into  a  large 
opening  in  the  ground,  into  which  my  horse  plunged 


288  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

after  him.  I  felt  myself  descending  into  the  earth  for 
about  half  an  hour,  when  my  horse's,  hoofs  came  sud- 
denly in  contact  with  the  floor.  Looking  about  me,  I 
saw,  instead  of  the  wild  boar,  which  I  confess  I  was 
somewhat  fearful  of  meeting,  a  very  ugly  woman,  who 
begged  me  to  alight  from  my  horse  and  follow  her.  I 
did  not  hesitate,  and  giving  her  my  hand,  she  opened  a 
little  door  which  I  had  not  before  perceived,  and  I  en- 
tered with  her  into  a  green  marble  saloon,  in  the  middle 
of  which  stood  a  large  golden  tub,  covered  by  a  piece  of 
rich  cloth.  This  she  raised,  and  I  saw  in  the  tub  a  lady 
of  such  surpassing  loveliness  that  I  could  with  difficulty 
preserve  myself  from  falling  backward  with  surprise. 

"  'Prince  Zirphil,'  said  the  lady,  who  appeared  to  be 
bathing,  'the  Fairy  Marmotta  has  enchanted  me  here, 
and  it  is  by  your  aid  alone  that  I  can  be  freed.' 

"  'Speak,  madam,'  said  I,  'inform  me  how  I  can  serve 
you.' 

'You  must/  replied  the  lady,  'either  pledge  yourself 
to  marry  me  immediately,  or  scale  me  alive.' 

"My  surprise  at  the  first  proposition  could  only  be 
equaled  by  my  horror  at  the  alternative.  She  observed 
my  embarrassment,  and  continued: 

"  'Do  not  imagine  that  I  am  ridiculing  you,  or  that  I 
am  making  a  proposal  that  you  will  have  any  reason  to 
repent  accepting.  No,  Zirphil,  do  not  be  alarmed;  but 
I  am  an  unfortunate  princess  for  whom  the  fairy  has  con- 
ceived a  violent  hatred,  and  whom  she  has  metamor- 
phosed into  a  creature  half-woman,  half-whale,  because 
I  refused  to  marry  her  nephew,  the  King  of  the  Whit- 
ings, a  young  man  the  ugliness  of  whose  person  is  only 
equaled  by  the  wickedness  of  his  actions;  the  fairy  has 
condemned  me  to  remain  in  the  state  in  which  you  now 
see  me  until  a  prince  named  Zirphil  shall  have  fulfilled 
one  of  the  conditions  I  have  just  proposed  to  you.  To 
bring  this  about,  I  caused  my  lady-of-honor  to  take  the 
shape  of  a  wild  boar  this  morning,  in  order  to  attract  you 
hither;  you  know  how  my  design  has  succeeded.  But  I 
must  now  inform  you  that  you  will  not  be  allowed  to 
quit  this  place  until  you  have  complied  with  either  one 
or  the  other  of  my  requests;  this  I  cannot  avoid,  and 
Citronetta,  whom  you  have  already  seen,  will  confirm  to 
you  the  truth  of  my  words.' 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  289 

"Conceive,  madam/'  said  Prince  Zirphil  to  the  queen, 
who  was  listening  with  the  greatest  attention,  "into  what 
a  state  tkis  speech  threw  me.  Although  I  thought  that 
the  princess  was  very  beautiful,  and  although  her  beauty 
and  misfortunes  made  her  extremely  interesting,  the  idea 
of  a  whale  princess  inspired  me  with  horror;  on  the  other 
hand,  the  thought  of  scaling  her  alive  made  me  frantic. 

"  'But  madam,'  said  I  at  length  (for  the  silence  into 
which  her  discourse  had  thrown  me  was  becoming  as  in- 
supportable as  it  was  unmannerly),  'is  there  no  third 
means  of  accomplishing  what  you  desire?'  I  had  no 
sooner  pronounced  these  unlucky  words  than  the  princess 
and  her  attendant  began  to  utter  such  piercing  shrieks 
and  lamentations  as  almost  rent  the  roof  of  the  saloon. 
'Ingrate!  barbarian!  tiger!  everything  that  is  most  fero- 
cious and  inhuman!'  said  she;  'you  would  then  add  to 
my  punishment  the  horror  of  seeing  .you  expire?  For 
know  that  if  you  do  not  resolve  at  once  to  comply  with 
my  request,  the  fairy  has  assured  me  that  you  will  per- 
ish; and  that  I  shall  remain  in  my  present  condition  all 
my  life.' 

"Her  reproaches  pierced  my  heart;  she  drew  her  beau- 
tiful arms  from  the  water,  and  clasped  her  lily-white 
hands  to  entreat  me  to  decide  quickly.  Citronetta  threw 
herself  at  my  feet  and  embraced  my  knees,  almost  deaf- 
ening me  with  her  clamorous  grief.  'But  how  can  I 
marry  you?'  said  I,  'how  can  the  ceremony  be  per- 
formed, in  the  first  place?' 

"  'Scale  me,'  said  she  tenderly,  'and  do  not  marry  me 
at  all.  I  shall  be  quite  as  well  pleased.' 

"  'Scale  her,'  said  the  attendant,  redoubling  her  en- 
treaties, 'and  trouble  yourself  no  further.' 

"I  was  in  an  inexpressible  perplexity;  and  when  I  at- 
tempted to  reflect  how  to  act  their  cries  and  tears  only 
increased  my  confusion.  At  last,  after  a  thousand  con- 
flicting thoughts,  I  looked  again  on  the  beautiful  whale- 
princess,  and  her  beauty  triumphed.  I  knelt  near  the 
tub,  and  taking  her  fair  hand:  'No,  adorable  princess,'  I 
exclaimed,  'I  will  not  scale  you;  I  prefer  to  marry  you.' 

"The  princess'  joy  at  hearing  these  words  was  visible 
on  her  countenance;  but  it  was  a  modest  joy,  for  she 
blushed,  and  with  downcast  eyes  she  said: 

"  'I  shall  never  forget  the  service  you  are  about  to  do 


OLti,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

me;  I  am  so  penetrated  with  gratitude  to  you  that  you 
cannot  ask  me  for  anything  that  I  will  not  grant  you  in 
return.' 

"  'Come,  lose  no  time/  cried  the  impatient  Citronetta, 
'but  inform  Prince  Zirphil  what  remains  for  him  to  do.' 

"  'It  is  only  necessary/  said  the  whale-princess,  blush- 
ing again,  'for  you  to  give  me  your  ring  and  to  receive 
mine;  here  is  my  hand,  receive  it  as  a  pledge  of  my 
faith.' 

"No  sooner  had  I  made  this  tender  exchange  and 
kissed  her  fair  hand,  than  I  found  myself  on  my  horse, 
in  the  middle  of  the  forest,  where  I  was  soon  rejoined  by 
my  attendants,  and  I  returned  to  the  place  mute  with 
astonishment.  Every  evening  since  this  took  place  I 
have  been  transported,  without  knowing  by  what  means, 
into  the  handsome  green  marble  saloon,  where  I  pass  the 
night  in  company  with  an  invisible  person,  who  says  she 
is  my  bride,  and  who  converses  with  me  on  the  subject 
of  our  union:  but " 

"Ah!  my  son,"  interrupted  the  queen,  ''and  is  it  pos- 
sible that  you  are  really  married?" 

"Yes!  but  although  I  am  very  fond  of  my  wife, 
madam,"  resumed  the  prince,  "I  would  have  restrained 
my  passion  for  her,  if  I  could  have  disenchanted  her 
without  either  marrying  her  or  scaling  her  alive." 

As  Zirphil  pronounced  these  words,  a  small  voice  was 
heard  from  the  queen's  pocket,  saying:  "Prince  Zirphil, 
you  should  have  scaled  her;  and  your  pity  will  perhaps 
be  fatal  to  you." 

On  hearing  this  voice  the  prince  was  quite  speechless 
with  astonishment.  In  vain  the  queen  attempted  to  con- 
ceal the  speaker  from  him:  he  immediately  fumbled  in 
the  pocket  which  was  lying  on  an  armchair  which  stood 
near  the  bed,  and  drew  forth  the  case,  which  the  queen 
took  from  his  hand  and  opened.  Princess  Minikin  then 
stepped  from  it,  and  the  prince,  in  surprise,  kneeling  down 
by  the  queen's  bedside  to  look  at  her  more  closely,  ex- 
claimed: "Would  you  believe,  madam,  that  this  is  the 
miniature  counterpart  of  my  beloved  whale-princess!" 
The  queen  then  informed  her  son  of  all  that  had  passed 
on  the  Fairy  Marmotta's  visit,  at  which  Zirphil  could  not 
forbear  showing  a  surprise  not  very  flattering  to  Minikin; 
but  she  was  so  good-natured  that  when  she  saw  the 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  291 

queen's  affliction  she  kissed  her  hand  and  could  not  re- 
frain  from  tears.  Zirphil  was  touched  by  this  tender 
scene,  and  asked  Minikin  for  her  hand  to  kiss  in  its  turn: 
with  much  grace  and  dignity  she  extended  it  to  him,  and 
then  re-entered  her  case.  When  Zirphil  had  left  the 
queen  she  rose  from  her  bed  to  inform  the  king  of  what 
she  had  heard  and  of  what  she  had  just  witnessed,  that 
they  might  take  every  reasonable  precaution  against  the 
probable  effect  of  the  fairy's  anger. 

The  following  night  Prince  Zirphil,  notwithstanding 
that  his  bodyguard  had  been  doubled,  was  carried  off  as 
the  clock  struck  twelve,  and  found  himself,  as  usual,  in 
company  with  his  invisible  princess;  but  instead  of  being 
greeted  with  kind  and  tender  language,  as  heretofore,  he 
heard  weeping  and  sounds  of  griei,  and  observed  that 
the  princess  kept  a  considerable  distance  from  him.  He 
ran  after  her  round  the  apartment  until  he  was  tired, 
when,  seating  himself  on  a  sofa,  he  exclaimed:  "What 
have  I  been  guilty  of  that  I  deserve  such  unkind  treat- 
ment?" 

"I  know  all,"  said  the  whale-princess  in  a  voice  choked 
by  sobs.  "Ingrate!  have  you  forgotten  the  tenderness 
with  which  you  kissed  the  hand  of  the  Princess  Mini- 
kin?" 

"The  tenderness,"  returned  Zirphil  quickly;  "ah/di- 
vine princess,  are  you  so  little  acquainted  with  mine  as 
to  accuse  me  on  so  slight  a  ground?  If  I  looked  at  Mini- 
kin attentively  it  was  only  because  her  face  exactly  re- 
sembles yours,  and,  being  deprived  of  the  pleasure  of 
seeing  you,  all  that  resembles  you  fills  me  with  delight. 
Conceal  yourself  no  longer,  my  dear  princess,  and  be  sure 
that  I  will  look  at  none  but  you." 

The  invisible  prmftess  seemed  to  be  consoled  by  those 
words,  and  drawing  near  the  prince:  "Forgive  mer"  said 
she,  "this  little  jealous  suspicion;  I  have  reasons  enough 
to  dread  being  separated  from  you,  to  be  afflicted  at  any- 
thing that  seems  to  forebode  that  misfortune." 

"But,"  said  Zirphil,  "can  you  not  inform  me  why  you 
are  not  permitted  to  make  yourself  visible  to  me?  For, 
if  I  have  delivered  you  from  Marmotta's  tyranny,  how  is 
it  that  you  are  still  under  enchantment?" 

"Alas!"  said  the  invisible  princess,  "if  you  had  chosen 
to  scale  me  we  should  have  been  much  happier;  but  you 


292  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

felt  so  much  horror  at  that  proposition  that  I  dared  not 
press  yfou  more." 

"By  what  means,"  interrupted  Zirphil,  "is  Minikin 
acquainted  with  what  has  happened?  for  she  said  nearly 
the  same  thing  to  me." 

No  sooner  had  he  pronounced  these  words  than  the 
whale-princess  uttered  a  piercing  shriek  and  sprang  off 
the  sofa,  and  the  prince,  in  astonishment,  did  so  too. 
But  what  was  his  terror  when  he  uerceived  the  hideous 
Marmotta,  in  the  middle  of  the  apartment,  holding  his 
beautiful  princess  by  her  flowing  ringlets:  no  longer  in- 
visible, no  longer  half  a  whale.  He  drew  his  sword;  but 
his  princess,  with  tears  and  supplications,  entreated  him 
to  moderate  his  anger,  as  it  would  be  of  no  avail  against 
the  fairy's  power,  and  the  horrible  Marmotta,  gnashing 
her  teeth,  there  issued  from  her  mouth  a  violet-colored 
flame,  which  singed  his  whiskers.  "Prince  Zirphil," 
said  the  fairy  to  him,  "a  fairy  who  guards  you  prevents 
me  from  exterminating  you,  your  father,  your  mother, 
and  all  who  are  related  to  yon;  but  you  shall  at  least  suf- 
fer in  what  is  most  dear  to  you  for  marrying  without 
having  consulted  me,  and  your  torments,  and  those  of 
your  princess,  shall  not  cease  until  you  are  submitted  to 
my  power." 

As  she  finished  these  words  the  fairy  disappeared,  to- 
gether with  the  princess,  the  apartment  and  the  palace, 
and  Prince  Zirphil  found  himself  in  his  owir  room  in  his 
nightdress  and  with  his  drawn  sword  in  his  hand.  He 
was  so  astonished  and  so  beside  himself  with  anger  that 
he  did  not  observe  that  it  was  freezing,  for  it  was  then 
the  middle  of  winter.  On  hearing  his  outcries  his 
guards  rushed  into  his  chamber  and  requested  him  either 
to  go  to  bed  or  allow  himself  to  be  dressed.  He  chose 
the  latter,  and  went  straight  to  the  apartment  of  ^i 
queen,  who,  on  her  part,  had  passed  the  night  in  tno 
most  dreadful  anxiety.  On  going  to  bed  the  queen  was 
unable  to  sleep,  and,  being  troubled  with  sorrowful 
thoughts,  she  resolved  to  impart  them  to  the  little  Mini- 
kin. With  that  purpose  she  took  the  case;  but  in  vain 
she  shook  it — Minikin  was  no  longer  there.  The  queen, 
fearful  that  she  had  lost  her  in  the  garden,  rose  from  her 
bed  and  gave  orders  for  torches  to  be  lighted  and  a 
search  to  be  made  immediately;  but  in  vain  they  searched; 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  293 

Minikin  had  vanished,  and  the  queen  returned  to  her 
bed  in  a  transport  of  grief,  with  which  she  was  over- 
whelmed when  her  son  entered  her  apartment.  He  was 
himself  in  such  affliction  that  he  did  not  perceive  that 
his  mother  was  in  tears.  The  queen,  therefore,  when  she 
noticed  his  agitation,  said:  "Ah!  doubtless  you  are  come 
to  announce  some  terrible  calamity?" 

"Yes,  madam,"  answered  Zirphil,  "I  am  come  to  in- 
form you  that  I  wish  to  live  no  longer  if  I  do  not  find  my 
dear  princess." 

"How,  my  son!"  said  the  queen,  "are  you  already  in 
love  with  that  unfortunate  princess?" 

"What!  with  your  Minikin?"  said  the  prince;  "is  it 
possible  that  you  can  even  suspect  me?  Alas!  my  dear 
whale-princess  has  been  torn  from  me;  for  her  only  I 
wish  to  live,  and  Marmotta,  the  cruel  Marrnotta,  has 
dragged  her  from  me." 

"Ah!  my  son,"  said  the  queen,  "lam  still  more  af- 
flicted than  you  are;  for  if  you  are  deprived  of  your 
whale-princess  I  have  to  regret  the  loss  of  my  Minikin, 
who  since  last  evening  has  disappeared  from  the  case." 
Then  the  queen  and  Zirphil  related  to  each  other  the 
misfortunes  that  had  befallen  them.  The  king  was 
promptly  informed  of  the  queen's  despair  and  outcries, 
as  also  of  his  son's  sorrow.  He  entered  the  apartment  in 
the  midst  of  the  scene  we  have  described,  and  informed 
himself  of  what  had  occurred.  As  he  was  very  sagacious, 
the  thought  immediately  struck  him  to  have  Minikin  ad- 
vertised, and  to  offer  a  large  reward  to  whoever  should 
bring  her  to  the  palace.  Everybody  thought  this  an 
admirable  expedient,  and  the  queen  herself,  notwithstand- 
ing her  sorrow,  was  obliged  to  agree  that  no  one  but  the- 
most  transcendent  genius  could  have  hit  upon  so  singu- 
felicitous  a  scheme.  Accordingly,  handbills  were 
printed  and  distributed,  and  the  queen  consoled  herself 
with  the  hope  of  soon  receiving  intelligence  of  her  little 
princess.  As  for  Zirphil,  the  loss  of  Minikin  interested 
him  as  little  as  her  presence.  He  came  to  the  resolution 
of  seeking  out  a  certain  fairy  of  whom  he  had  heard,  and 
having  obtained  permission  of  the  king  and  queen  he  set 
out  immediately,  attended  only  by  hi^  equerry. 

The  country  in  which  the  fairy  lived  was  situated  at 
an  immense  distance  from  that  of  the  prince;  but  neither 


294  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

time  nor  obstacle  could  stop  the  amorous  impatience  of 
the  young  Zirphil.  He  passed  through  kingdoms  and 
countries  out  of  number.  Nothing  particular  occurred 
to  him,  because  he  was  determined  that  nothing  should; 
for,  beautiful  as  Cupid  and  brave  as  a  lion,  adventures 
would  have  befallen  him  if  he  had  been  willing  to  seek 
them.  At  last,  after  he  had  been  a  year  on  his  travel, 
he  arrived  at  the  borders  of  the  desert  in  which  the  fairy 
resided;  he  alighted  from  his  horse,  and  left  his  equerry 
to  await  his  return  in  a  little  hut,  with  orders  not  to  be 
impatient  for  his  coming.  He  entered  on  the  desert, 
which  was  indeed  frightfully  solitary:  it  was  inhabited 
only  by  owls,  but  their  dismal  screechings  did  not  dismay 
the  soul  of  our  courageous  prince.  Sustained  by  his  un- 
conquerable intrepidity,  and  by  the  hope  of  meeting  with 
the  beneficent  fairy,  he  did  not  hesitate  an  instant,  but 
penetrated  into  that  region  which  until  then  had  never 
been  trodden  by  mortal  feet. 

After  night  had  set  in,  he  perceived  afar  off  a  light, 
which  made  him  think  that  he  was  approaching  the  fairy's 
grotto:  for  no  one  but  a  fairy  could  reside  in  that  hor- 
rible desert.  He  continued  to  direct  his  steps  toward  it 
during  the  whole  of  the  night;  and  at  last,  about  day- 
break, he  discovered  the  celebrated  grotto.  He  arrived 
at  the  foot  of  a  prodigiously  high  rock,  which  seemed  to 
be  of  fire,  such  was  its  brilliancy;  it  was  a  carbuncle  of 
such  an  immense  size  that  the  fairy  had  a  very  spacious 
residence  therein.  When  Prince  Zirphil  had  reached  her 
grotto  the  Fairy  Effulgent  appeared  to  him;  he  pros 
trated  himself  before  her,  when  she  desired  him  to  rise 
and  follow  her  into  the  grotto.  "Prince,"  said  she  to 
Zirphil,  "a  power  equal  to  mine  has  partly  counteracted 
the  happiness  with  which  I  endowed  you  at  your  birth; 
but  you  may  expect  everything  from  my  protection;  you 
must  have  as  much  patience  as  courage,  to  overcome 
Marmotta's  wickedness.  I  can  tell  you  no  more." 

"At  least,  madam,"  answered  the  prince,  "do  me  the 
favor  to  inform  me  if  the  beautiful  whale-princess  is 
unhappy;  and  if  I  may  hope  to  see  her  again  soon." 

"She  is  not  unhappy,"  said  Effulgent,  "but  you  can- 
not hope  to  see  her  again  until  you  have  pounded  her  in 
the  mortar  of  the  King  of  the  Whitings." 

"Oh,  heavens!"  cried  Zirphil;  "is  it  possible,  madam, 


OLD,  OLD  FAIR7  TALES.  395 

that  she  is  in  his  power?  Alas!  then  I  have  to  dread  the 
effects  of  his  passion  for  her,  in  addition  to  the  horror  I 
feel  at  having  to  pound  her  with  my  own  hands!" 

"Arm  yourself  with  courage/'  answered  the  fairy, 
"and  do  not  hesitate  to  obey  me;  on  that  all  your  happi- 
ness will  depend,  as  also  that  of  your  wife." 

"But  she  will  die  if  I  pound  her,"  continued  the 
prince,  "and  I  would  sooner  suffer  death  myself " 

"Go,"  said  the  fairy,  "and  make  no  reply:  every  mo- 
ment that  you  lose  adds  to  Marmotta's  fury.  Hasten  to 
the  King  of  the  Whitings;  tell  him  that  you  are  the 
page  promised  him  by  me;  and  rely  on  my  protection." 
Then  Effulgent  pointed  out  to  him,  on  a  map,  his  road 
to  the  court  of  the  King  of  the  Whitings;  and  dismissed 
him,  after  apprising  him  that  the  ring  he  had  received 
from  his  whale-princess  would  instruct  him  how  to  act 
when  the  king  gave  him  anything  difficult  to  perform. 
He  set  out;  and,  after  journeying  several  days,  arrived 
at  a  meadow  close  to  the  seaside,  where  there  was  moored 
a  little  sailing-boat,  built  of  mother-of-pearl  and  orna- 
mented with  gold.  He  looked  at  his  ruby-ring,  and  saw 
his  shadow  sitting  in  the  boat;  so  he  jumped  on  board; 
and  having  unmoored  it,  the  wind  drove  it  out  to  sea: 
he  was  soon  out  of  sight  of  land,  and  after  being  driven 
before  the  wind  for  several  hours,  the  boat  stopped  at  the 
foot  of  a  crystal  castle,  built  on  piles.  He  sprang  on  the 
landing-place,  and  entered  a  court  which  led  to  a  superb 
vestibule  and  to  a  numerous  suite  of  apartments,  all  the 
walls  of  which  were  of  rock-crystal,  admirably  engraved, 
presenting  the  most  charming  effect  imaginable.  This 
castle  was  the  palace  of  the  King  of  the  Whitings;  and 
its  only  inhabitants  were  men  with  fishes'  heads.  The 
prince  had  no  doubt  as  to  where  he  was:  he  felt  his 
choler  rising,  but  he  controlled  it  to  ask  of  a  turbot, 
who  looked  like  a  captain  of  the  guard,  where  he  could 
find  the  King  of  the  Whitings.  The  man-turbot  gravely 
motioned  him  onward,  and  Zirphil  passed  into  the  guard- 
room, where  he  saw  a  thousand  men,  with  pikes'  heads, 
under  arms,  who  fell  into  a  double  rank  for  him  to  pass 
through:  at  last,  after  making  his  way  through  an  in- 
finite crowd  of  men-fish,  he  came  to  the  presence-cham- 
ber. He  did  not  hear  much  noise  in  his  progress,  for 
the  men-fish  were  dumb;  while  he  observed  that  the 


296  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

greater  part  of  them  had  heads  like  the  whitings.  The 
prince  saw  in  the  anteroom  several  who  appeared  to  be 
of  high  rank,  from  the  crowds  which  surrounded  them, 
and  from  their  own  important  looks.  Zirphil  had 
reached  the  king's  closet,  just  as  the  council,  which  was 
composed  of  twelve  men  with  sharks'  heads,  was  leaving 
his  majesty.  Presently,  the  king  himself  appeared:  he 
had,  like  so  many  of  his  court,  the  head  of  a  whiting; 
but  he  had  also  fins  on  his  shoulders,  and  from  the  waist 
downward  was  a  real  whiting.  He  had  the  gift  of 
speech;  and  his  only  garment  was  a  scarf  of  golden-fish- 
skin,  which  looked  very  splendid.  On  his  head  he  wore 
a  helmet  shaped  like  a  crown,  whence  depended  the  tail 
of  a  codfish,  which  served  him  instead  of  a  plume  of 
feathers.  Four  men-whitings  were  carrying  him  in  a 
bowl  made  of  Japanese  porcelain,  about  the  size  of  a 
bathing-tub,  and  which  was  filled  with  sea-water.  One 
of  the  greatest  ceremonials  at  the  court,  and  which  was 
scrupulously  exacted  by  the  king,  was  the  refilling  of 
this  bowl,  twice  a  day,  by  the  peers  and  dukes,  his  at- 
tendants. This  employment  was,  however,  considered  a 
great  honor,  and  was  much  sought  after. 

The  King  of  the  Whitings  was  very  tall,  and  looked 
more  like  a  monster  than  anything  else.  After  replying 
to  some  of  those  about  him  who  had  brought  him  peti- 
tions, he  perceived  the  prince.  "Who  are  you,  my 
friend?"  said  his  majesty.  "What  accident  has  brought 
a  man  here?" 

"May  it  please  your  majesty,"  answered  Zirphil,  "I  am 
the  page  whom  the  Fairy  Effulgent  promised  to  send 
you." 

"Oh!  I  understand,"  said  the  king,  laughing  and 
showing  his  teeth,  which  looked  like  those  of  a  saw; 
"let  him  be  taken  to  my  seraglio,  and  let  all  my  crawfish 
be  shown  him.  Every  morning  he  must  choose  ten  from 
among  them,  pound  them  in  a  mortar,  and  make  me 
some  broth." 

Zirphil  was  conducted  to  the  seraglio,  and  while  reflect- 
ing on  his  singular  situation,  he  saw  the  doors  open  and 
ten  or  twelve  thousand  crawfish  enter  the  room  and  ar- 
range themselves  in  straight  lines,  nearly  filling  the 
apartment. 

The  thought  struck  him  that  he  might  be  able  to  dis- 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  297 

cover  his  beautiful  and  unfortunate  whale-princess  among 
them;  as  the  hideous  Marmotta  had  ordained  that  he 
should  pound  her  in  a  mortar.  "Why  should  I  have  to 
pound  them/'  said  he,  "except  it  is  to  drive  me  mad? 
But  never  mind,  let  me  try  to  discover  her/'  cried  Zir- 
phil;  "that  I  may  at  least  die  of  grief  before  her  face." 
Then  he  asked  the  crawfish  if  they  would  allow  him  to 
search  among  them  for  one  with  whom  he  was  ac- 
quainted. She  who  appeared  to  be  the  chief  mounted 
on  a  table  and  said: 

"We  are  not  aware  that  there  is  such  a  one  among  us, 
sir,  but  you  may  search  until  it  is  time  for  us  to  return 
to  our  pond;  where  it  is  absolutely  requisite  that  we 
should  pass  the  night." 

Zirphl  commenced  his  researches;  but  it  was  like  look- 
ing for  a  needle  in  a  bundle  of  hay,  and  he  only  learned 
from  those  he  interrogated  that  they  were  all  princesses 
who  had  been  transformed  by  the  wicked  Marmotta. 
He  was  inexpressibly  grieved  on  hearing  this,  and  to 
think  that  he  would  have  to  choose  ten  of  them  every  day 
for  the  king's  broth.  It  was  now  getting  late,  and  they 
informed  Zirphil  that  it  was  time  for  them  to  return  to 
their  pond,  but  it  was  not  without  pain  that  the  prince 
could  consent  to  forego  the  pleasure  of  searching,  how- 
ever fruitlessly,  for  his  dear  princess.  He  had  not  been 
able  during  the  whole  day  to  speak  to  more  than  one 
hundred  and  fifty;  but  as  he  was  at  least  certain  that  she 
was  not  among  those,  he  resolved  to  take  ten  from  their 
number:  he  did  so,  and  having  taken  them  to  a  man- 
pike,  who  was  the  head-cook,  the  latter  inspected  them, 
and  brought  Zirphil  a  green  porphyry  mortar  and  a 
golden  pestle,  and,  having  shown  the  prince  how  to  place 
them,  made  signs  for  him  to  begin  pounding.  He  was 
about  to  do  so  when  the  bottom  of  the  mortar  opened 
amid  shouts  of  laughter,  and  sent  forth  a  bright  flame 
which  dazzled  the  prince's  eyes  for  a  moment,  and  then 
expired,  leaving  the  bottom  of  the  mortar  as  before. 
Zirphil  looked  into  it,  but  nothing  was  there;  the  craw- 
fish had  disappeared,  at  which  he  was  very  much  as- 
tonished, but  withal  pleased:  for  he  did  not  relish  the 
idea  of  having  to  pound  them.  Tha  man-pike  seemed  to 
regret  what  had  taken  place,  and  wept  bitterly. 

The  prince  was  as  much  surprised  at  seeing  the  head- 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

cook's  grief  as  at  the  laughter  of  the  crawfish;  but  he 
could  not  learn  what  occasioned  either,  as  the  crawfish 
were  gone  and  the  man-pike  could  not  speak. 

Prince  Zirphil,  pondering  on  what  he  had  witnessed, 
returned  to  his  pretty  apartment,  where  he  no  longer 
saw  the  crawfish,  they  having  returned  to  their  pond. 
The  next  morning,  when  the  crawfish  entered,  he  again 
sought  for  his  princess,  and,  not  finding  her,  he  chose 
ten  of  the  finest  of  them  and  took  them  to  the  kitchen. 
The  same  adventure  occurred  as  before:  the  flame  came 
from  the  mortar,  the  crawfish  disappeared  laughing,  and 
the  man-pike  wept.  A  similar  occurrence  happened 
every  day  for  three  months;  but  as  Zirphil  heard  no  more 
of  the  King  of  the  Whitings,  his  only  sorrow  was  that  he 
could  not  find  his  beautiful  whale-princess. 

One  evening,  as  Zirphil  was  returning  from  the  kitchen 
to  his  room,  he  had  occasion  to  pass  through  the  palace 
gardens:  as  he  passed  near  the  palisade  which  surrounded 
a  charming  grove,  in  the  middle  of  which  was  an  artificial 
cascade,  he  heard  the  sound  of  voices,  which  not  a  little 
surprised  him,  for  he  thought  all  the  inhabitants  of  that 
country  were  dumb,  like  those  he  had  seen.  He  walked 
more  softly  and  heard  a  voice  say:  "But,  my  princess,  so 
surely  as  you  never  discover  yourself,  so  surely  your  hus- 
band will  never  recognize  you." 

"What  would  you  have  me  do?"  said  the  other  voice, 
which  Zirphil  immediately  recognized  as  one  which  he 
had  so  often  heard;  "the  tyranny  of  Marmotta  obliges 
me  to  act  as  I  do,  and  I  cannot  discover  myself  without 
endangering  my  life  and  his.  The  wise  Fairy  Effulgent, 
who  sent  me  there  conceals  me  from  him,  for  the  purpose 
of  preserving  us  for  each  other:  it  is  absolutely  necessary 
that  he  should  pound  me,  it  is  an  irrevocable  decree." 

"Whence  comes  it  that  the  prince  must  pound  you?" 
said  the  other;  "you  have  never  consented  to  relate  your 
history  to  me,  though  the  unfortunate  Citronetta,  your 
confidante,  would  have  informed  me  of  it,  if  she  had  not 
been  selected  last  week  for  the  king's  broth." 

"Alas!"  replied  the  whale-princess,  "that  unfortunate 
creature  has  then  already  undergone  the  fate  which 
awaits  me.  Would  that  I  were  in  her  place!  surely  she 
is  now  in  Effulgent's  grotto." 

"Do,"  said  the  other  voice,  "since  it  is  so  fine  an  even,- 


OLD,  OLD  FA1RT  TALES.  299 

ing,  inform  me  why  you  are  submitted  to  Marmotta's 
vengeance?  I  have  already  told  ytm  who  I  am,  and  I 
repeat  that  I  am  burning  with  impatience  to  learn  your 
history." 

"Well,"  said  the  princess,  "although  it  will  only  re- 
new my  grief,  I  cannot  refuse  to  satisfy  you;  besides,  I 
shall  have  to  speak  of  Zirphil,  and  I  abandon  myself  with 
joy  to  all  that  can  recall  his  image  to  my  mind." 

It  is  easy  to  imagine  the  prince's  joy  at  overhearing 
this  tender  confession:  he  softly  glided  into  the  grove, 
and,  as  it  was  now  quite  dark,  he  could  neither  see  nor 
be  seen:  he  listened,  however,  with  the  utmost  attention 
and  overheard  as  follows: 

"My  father  was  king  of  a  certain  country  situated  near 
Mount  Caucasus;  he  governed  as  well  as  he  could  a  peo- 
ple of  incredible  wickedness:  insurrections  were  perpet- 
ually shaking  his  throne,  and  the  windows  of  his  palace 
were  frequently  shattered  to  pieces  by  stones  intended 
for  himself.  The  queen,  my  mother,  who  was  very 
clever  and  highly  accomplished,  composed  for  him  ha- 
rangues to  appease  the  rioters;  but  if  he  were  successful 
one  day,  on  the  next  there  was  infallibly  another  insur- 
rection. The  judges  were  tired  of  condemning  to  death, 
and  the  executioners  of  hanging  and  beheading  the  crim- 
inals: at  last  things  arrived  at  such  a  crisis  that,  seeing 
all  his  provinces  in  rebellion,  and  his  people  in  arms 
against  him,  my  father  resolved  to  retire  into  the  coun- 
try, that  he  might  no  longer  witness  the  dreadful  condi- 
tion of  his  affairs.  He  took  his  queen  with  him,  and 
left  the  kingdom  to  be  governed  by  one  of  his  ministers: 
a  man  wiser  and  of  bolder  spirit  than  the  king,  my 
father.  Our  wicked  subjects  lighted  bonfires  at  their 
departure,  and  the  next  day  strangled  the  minister,  declar- 
ing that  he  wanted  to  act  the  king,  and  that  they  pre- 
ferred even  their  old  one  to  him.  My  father  was  not  at 
all  flattered  by  their  preference,  and  did  not  therefore 
quit  the  retirement  of  his  little  country-house,  where  I 
was  born.  I  was  called  Minikin  because  I  was  very  small, 
and  as  the  king  and  queen,  tired  of  honors  that  had  cost 
them  so  dearly,  wished  to  conceal  my  birth  from  me, 
they  brought  me  up  as  a  shepherdess.  At  the  end  of  ten 
years,  which  appeared  to  my  parents  no  longer  than  ten 
minutes,  so  contented  were  they  with  their  retreat,  the 


300  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

fairies  who  inhabited  Mount  Caucasus,  indignant  at  the 
persevering  wickedness  of  the  inhabitants  of  my  father's 
late  kingdom,  resolved  to  restore  it  to  order. 

'''One  day  as  I  was  tending  my  flock  in  the  meadow 
that  joined  our  garden  two  old  shepherdesses  accosted 
me,  and  entreated  me  to  give  them  a  night's  lodging: 
they  looked  so  weary  and  so  sorrowful  that  I  instantly 
took  compassion  on  them.  'Come,'  said  I  to  them;  'my 
father,  who  is  a  shepherd,  will  be  willing  to  receive  you.' 
I  then  ran  to  our  cottage  to  tell  him  that  they  were  com- 
ing; he  went  out  to  meet  them,  and  received  them  very 
kindly,  as  did  the  queen  my  mother.  I  then  collected 
my  sheep,  and  fetched  some  new  milk  for  our  guests; 
and,  while  my  father  was  preparing  something  nice  for 
supper,  the  queen,  who,  as  I  have  already  told  you,  was 
very  intelligent,  entertained  them  with  her  conversation. 

"1  had  a  little  lamb  of  which  I  was  excessively  fond: 
my  father  told  me  to  bring  it  to  him  that  he  might  put 
it  down  to  yoast.  I  was  not  in  the  habit  of  refusing  to 
do  as  I  was  desired,  so  1  fetched  my  lamb  immediately; 
but  I  was  so  afflicted  that  I  ran  to  my  mother  and  burst 
into  tears:  she  was,  however,  so  much  engaged  in  talk- 
ing to  the  good  women  that  she  did  not  observe  me. 
'What  is  the  matter  with  the  little  Minikin?'  said  one  of 
them,  seeing  me  in  tears. 

"  'Alas!  madam,'  said  I  to  her,  'my  father  is  about  to 
roast  for  you  my  little  pet-lamb.' 

"  'What,'  said  she  who  had  not  spoken,  'is  it  for  us 
that  they  are  going  to  be  so  cruel  to  the  pretty  Minikin?' 
Then,  rising  from  her  seat,  she  struck  the  floor  with  her 
wand,  and  there  instantly  appeared  a  table,  on  which  was 
spread  a  magnificent  feast;  at  the  same  time  the  two  old 
shepherdesses  were  transformed  into  two  ladies,  so  hand- 
some and  so  glittering  with  jewels  that  I  was  motionless 
with  surprise  at  seeing  them. 

"My  father  and  mother  immediately  began  to  testify 
their  respect  for  the  two  fairies — for  you  may  be  sure 
that  fairies  they  were.  Kaising  them  from  their  feet, 
where  the  king  and  queen  had  thrown  themselves:  'King 
and  queen,'  said  the  more  majestic  of  the  two,  'we  have 
known  you  for  a  long  time;  and  your  misfortunes  have 
excited  our  pity.  Do  not  think  that  a  high  station  is 
exempt  from  the  evils  attendant  on  human  life:  you 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRT  TALES.  301 

ought  to  know  from  experience  that  the  higher  the 
rank,  the  greater  the  liability  to  misfortune;  your  pa- 
tience and  virtue,  however,  have  lifted  you  above  your 
hard  fate;  and  it  is  time  they  should  be  rewarded.  I  am 
the  Fairy  Effulgent,  and  I  am  come  to  ask  you  what  can 
most  contribute  to  your  happiness:  speak,  and  do  not  be 
afraid  of  putting  our  power  to  the  test;  consult  together, 
and  your  wishes  shall  be  accomplished.  But  do  not  let 
your  request  have  reference  to  Minikin:  her  destiny  is 
apart  from  yours.  The  Fairy  Marmotta,  jealous  of  the 
brillant  career  before  your  daughter,  has  condemned  her 
to  obscurity  for  a  certain  period;  but  Minikin  will  be 
better  able  to  appreciate  the  happiness  of  life  after  she 
shall  have  known  some  of  its  evils:  we  will  protect  her 
and  mitigate  her  fate.  This  is  all  we  are  permitted  to 
unfold  to  you.  Now  speak:  anything  that  you  can  ask 
shall  be  granted.' 

"The  fairies  were  silent  after  this  harangue.  The 
queen  turned  to  the  king  and  requested  him  to  make 
answer;  for  she  was  in  tears  at  learning  that  I  was  des- 
tined to  be  unfortunate:  but  neither  was  my  father  in  a 
condition  to  speak:  he  uttered  lamentable  cries,  and  I, 
seeing  my  parents  weep,  quitted  my  lamb,  to  join  my 
tears  to  theirs. 

"The  good  fairies,  affected  by  the  extreme  grief  which 
prevailed  in  the  royal  family,  spoke  a  few  words  apart; 
then  Effulgent,  who  had  already  spoken,  said  to  the 
queen:  'Be  consoled,  madam;  the  misfortunes  with  which 
Minikin  is  threatened  are  not  so  bad,  since  they  will  ter- 
minate happily;  for,  from  the  moment  that  the  husband 
we  have  destined  for  her  shall  have  performed  what  Fate 
shall  require  of  him,  Minikin  will  be  happy  for  the  re- 
mainder of  her  life;  and  our  sister  will  have  no  further 
power  over  either  of  them:  we  have  allotted  her  to  a 
prince,  who  is  every  way  worthy  of  her.  All  that  re- 
mains for  us  to  say  is,  that  it  is  absolutely  necessary  you 
should  lower  your  daughter  every  morning  into  the  well, 
and  let  her  bathe  there  during  the  space  of  half  an  hour. 
If  you  scrupulously  observe  this  rule,  perhaps  your 
daughter  may  avoid  the  misfortune  with  which  she  is 
menaced;  and  it  is  at  the  age  of  twelve  years  that  her 
destiny  will  be  fulfilled;  if  she  reach  thirteen,  without  • 
its  coming  to  pass,  there,  will  be  no  longer  anything  to 


302  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

fear:  so  much  for  Minikin.  For  yourselves,  express  but 
your  wishes,  and  they  shall  be  gratified." 

"The  king  and  queen  looked  at  each  other,  and,  after 
a  short  silence,  the  former  requested  to  be  changed  into 
a  statue  until  my  thirteen  probationary  years  should  be 
accomplished;  while  the  latter  conSned  her  wishes  to  re- 
questing that  the  temperature  of  the  well  in  which  I  was 
to  be  bathed  might  always  be  adapted  to  the  season. 
The  fairies,  charmed  with  this  excess  of  tenderness, 
granted  in  addition  that  the  well  should  be  filled  with 
orange-flower-water;  and  that  the  king,  whenever  the 
queen  should  throw  some  of  this  water  over  him,  should 
resume  his  natural  form,  and  be  changed  into  a  statue 
again  whenever  he  should  wish.  Then  the  fairies  took 
their  leave  of  us,  after  having  praised  the  king  and  queen 
for  their  moderation. 

"They  disappeared!  and  I  felt  grief  for  the  first  time 
in  my  life,  at  seeing  the  king,  my  father,  become  a  large 
statue  of  black  marble.  The  queen  gave  way  to  tears, 
and  I  also;  but  at  last,  as  everything  has  an  end,  I  ceased 
to  cry,  and  only  thought  of  consoling  my  mother;  for 
my  mind  was  highly  intellectual,  and  my  heart  capable 
of  the  deepest  feelings.  The  queen  passed  nearly  all  her 
time  at  the  feet  of  the  statue;  and  I,  after  being  bathed, 
according  to  the  fairies'  instructions,  went  regularly  to 
milk  our  sheep:  this  milk  formed  our  principal  food,  for 
the  queen  was  too  weak  to  have  an  appetite  for  anything 
else;  indeed,  it  was  only  her  love  for  me  that  made  her 
wish  to  prolong  a  life  which  seemed  so  unfortunate. 
'Alas,  my  child,  my  child!'  would  she  say  to  me  occasion- 
ally, 'of  what  avail  to  us  has  been  our  high  rank?'— for 
she  no  longer  concealed  from  me  my  birth — 'would  not  a 
less  elevated  station  have  been  preferable  to  a  crown  at- 
tended with  such  grievous  misfortunes?  Virtue  alone, 
joined  to  my  affection  for  you,  my  dear  Minikin,  enables 
me  to  support  them;  but  there  are  moments  when  my 
soul  seems  anxious  to  quit  my  body,  and  when  I  confess 
that  I  feel  a  pleasure  in  the  certainty  that  I  must  die.' 

"I  was  regularly  bathed  every  day,  and  my  mother  was 
very  much  afflicted  at  seeing  the  king  always  remain  an 
inanimate  statue;  however,  she  dared  not  recall  him  to 
life,  for  fear  that  she  should  only  cause  him  the  grief  of 
Witnessing  my  predicted  misfortune.  The  fairies  not 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  303 

having  specified  in  what  way  my  fate  was  to  affect  me, 
we  were  in  a  dreadful  state  of  anxiety,  the  queen  in  par- 
ticular. Her  imagination,  having  a  vast  field  for  its 
exercise,  foreboded  to  her  the  most  frightful  misfortunes, 
and  had  no  bounds  to  its  fears:  for  my  part,  I  soon 
ceased  to  think  upon  the  subject,  so  true  is  it  that  youth 
is  the  only  season  in  which  we  enjoy  the  present. 

"My  mother  was  continually  saying  that  she  had  a 
great  mind  to  recall  the  king  to  life,  which  I  advised  her 
to  do.  At  last,  at  the  end  of  six  months,  seeing  that  the 
fairies'  bath  had  made  me  very  beautiful,  and  had  im- 
proved my  understanding,  which  was  maturing  from  day 
to  day,  she  resolved  to  gratify  herself;  in  order,  as  she 
said,  to  give  the  king  the  pleasure  of  seeing  me:  so  she 
desired  me  to  fetch  her  some  water  from  the  well.  Ac- 
cordingly, the  next  morning,  when  I  had  bathed,  I 
brought  up  with  me  a  jug  filled  with  this  miraculous 
•water;  and  the  moment  that  my  mother  sprinkled  some 
drops  of  it  on  the  statue,  my  father  became  a  man  again. 
The  queen  threw  herself  at  his  feet,  to  ask  his  pardon  for 
disturbing  his  repose.  My  father  raised  her  and  embrac- 
ing her  tenderly,  peace  was  concluded;  and  she  presented 
to  him  his  daughter. 

"The  king  was  delighted  with  me,  and  lavished  on  me 
a  thousand  caresses;  then,  turning  to  the  queen,  he  asked 
her  if  she  had  any  news. 

"  'Alas!'  said  my  mother,  'how  should  any  reach  me 
in  this  desert?' 

"  'Well,  then,'  said  the  king,  'you  shall  hear  some* 
from  me;  for  I  have  not  been  asleep  all  this  time  as 
you  supposed.  The  fairies  who  protect  us  have  shown 
me  that  my  subjects  have  been  terribly  punished  for 
their  wickedness:  my  kingdom  being  transformed  into 
one  vast  lake,  and  the  inhabitants  into  so  many  men- 
fish.  A  nephew  of  the  Fairy  Marmotta,  whom  they  have 
placed  upon  the  throne,  persecutes  them  with  unceasing 
cruelty;  he  eats  them  up  for  the  slightest  offence.  At 
the  end  of  a  certain  period,  the  exact  duration  of  which 
is  unknown  to  me,  a  prince  will  come  who  shall  reign  in 
his  stead;  and  in  the  kingdom,  which  will  be  then  re- 
established, Minikin  will  enjoy  a  long  life  of  happiness. 
That  is  all  that  I  have  learned,  and  I  have  not  passed  my 
time  very  idly,'  added  the  king,  laughing,  'to  have 
learned  so  much.' 


304  OLDt  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

"We  passed  some  time  very  happily  indeed.  The  king 
and  queen,  however,  were  rather  sorrowful  when  they  re- 
membered that  I  was  approaching  my  thirteenth  year. 
As  the  queen  was  very  careful  to  bathe  me  every  day,  she 
still  hoped  that  the  prediction  would  not  be  fulfilled;  but 
who  can  boast  of  having  evaded  his  destiny?  One  morn- 
ing, the  queen  having  risen  early,  while  she  was  plucking 
some  flowers  to  adorn  our  mantelpiece,  for  the  king  was 
very  fond  of  flowers,  she  saw  crawling  from  under  a 
tuberose-tree  an  ugly  animal,  something  like  a  marmot. 
The  beast  sprang  at  my  mother,  and  bit  her  nose,  when 
she  fainted  away  with  pain,  and  the  fright  caused  by  so 
sudden  an  attack.  My  father,  uneasy  at  her  absence, 
went  to  seek  her;  and  you  may  judge  of  his  horror  at 
finding  his  wife  weltering  in  her  blood,  and  nearly  dead! 
He  uttered  frightful  cries,  which  soon  brought  me  to  his 
assistance;  and  between  us  we  bore  the  queen  to  our  cot- 
tage, and  laid  her  on  her  bed;  where  she  lay  insensible 
for  two  hours.  At  last  she  began  to  give  signs  of  return- 
ing consciousness;  and  in  a  few  moments  we  had  the  ex- 
treme pleasure  of  seeing  her  perfectly  restored,  except 
that  the  wound  she  had  received  was  exceedingly  pain- 
ful. Her  first  question  was,  whether  I  had  been  bathed; 
but  we  had  been  so  much  engaged  attending  to  her  that 
I  had  forgotten  my  bath.  On  hearing  this,  my  mother 
was  dreadfully  alarmed;  but  seeing  that  no  accident  had 
as  yet  befallen  me,  she  soon  became  tranquil,  and  related 
to  us  the  particulars  of  her  misfortune:  at  which  we  were 
very  much  surprised. 

"However,  the  day  passed  without  any  other  mis- 
chance; the  king  had  taken  down  his  fowling-piece,  and 
made  a  diligent  search  after  the  vile  brute,  but  in  vain! 
he  co-uld  not  find  it.  The  next  morning  at  daybreak, 
the  queen  arose  and  took  me  to  the  well.  She  lowered 
me  therein,  as  usual,  but,  alas!  0  fatal  and  miserable 
day!  at  that  moment  the  sky,  although  still  perfectly 
serene,  echoed  with  a  dreadful  thunder;  while  the  day 
was  rendered  more  brilliant  by  a  fearful  lightning,  and 
there  issued  from  a  burning  cloud,  which  suddenly  arose, 
a  fiery  dart  which  rushed  into  the  well.  Terrified,  my 
mother  quitted  her  hold  of  the  cord  that  held  me,  and  I 
was  precipitated  to  the  bottom  of  the  well;  when  I  im- 
mediately became  sensible  that  the  lower  half  of  my  body 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  305 

was  transformed  into  so  much  of  an  enormous  whale.  I 
swam  about  for  a  short  time,  and  then  began  calling  on 
the  queen  with  all  my  might.  She  did  not  answer,  at 
which  I  was  very  much  afflicted;  and  I  was  crying  very 
bitterly,  as  much  for  the  loss  of  my  mother  as  at  my 
metamorphosis,  when  I  felt  an  unknown  power  forcing 
me  to  descend;  and,  having  arrived  at  the  bottom  of  the 
water,  I  entered  a  crystal  grotto,  in  which  I  observed  a 
sort  of  nymph,  shaped  like  a  frog,  but  exceedingly  large, 


and  rather  dirty.  However,  she  smiled  when  she  saw 
me;  and  said:  'Minikin,  I  am  the  nymph  of  the  bottom- 
less well,  and  am  called  Citronetta;  I  have  orders  to  re- 
ceive you  here,  and  to  make  you  perform  the  penance  to 
which  you  are  doomed  for  having  omitted  your  bath;  fol- 
low me,  and  make  no  reply.'  She  took  hold  of  my  tail, 
and  dragged  me  unresistingly  into  a  green  marble  saloon, 
which  was  near  her  grotto;  and  there  placed  me  in  a 
golden  tub  full  of  water,  when  I  began  to  recover  my 
spirits.  The  good  nymph  appeared*  to  be  in  ecstasies.  I 
informed  her  of  the  events  of  my  life,  and  then  begged 
her  to  tell  me  what  was  become  of  the  king  and  queen. 


£06  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

"She  was  about  to  answer  me  when  a  frightful  mar- 
mot, as  large  as  a  human  creature,  entered  the  saloon, 
and  froze  me  with  horror.  She  walked  upright  on  her 
hind  legs,  leaning  on  a  golden  wand.  She  came  up  to 
the  tub,  in  which  I  would  fain  have  drowned  myself,  I  was 
so  terrified,  and  touching  me  with  her  wand:  'Minikin/ 
said  she  to  me,  'yon  are  in  my  power,  and  nothing  can 
withdraw  you  from  it,  but  your  obedience,  and  that  of 
the  prince,  whom  my  sisters  have  destined  to  be  your 
husband.  Listen  to  me,  and  divest  yourself  of  your  fear, 
•which  does  not  become  the  daughter  of  a  king.  From 
your  infancy  I  wished  to  protect  you  and  marry  you  to 
my  nephew,  the  King  of  the  Whitings;  Effulgent,  how- 
ever, and  two  or  three  more  of  my  sisters,  had  already 
taken  upon  themselves  to  provide  you  with  a  husband; 
and,  angry  in  consequence,  I  let  the  effects  of  my  ill- 
humor  fall  upon  you.  Having  no  power  over  my  sisters; 
I  resolved  to  punish  you  for  their  stubbornness,  and  so 
ordained  that  you  should  be  transformed  into  a  creature, 
half-woman,  half-whale,  for  at  least  the  half  of  your  life. 
My  sisters  cried  shame  on  such  injustice,  so  I  was  in- 
duced to  diminish  the  effects  of  my  vengeance;  but  for 
my  complaisance,  I  reserved  to  myself  the  determination 
of  marrying  you  to  my  nephew.  Effulgent,  who  is  some- 
what imperious,  and  whose  power  is  unfortunately 
superior  to  mine,  would  not  hear  of  this  reservation,  be- 
cause she  had  destined  you  for  a  prince  who  was  under 
her  protection.  I  was  accordingly  obliged  to  accede  to 
her  wishes,  notwithstanding  my  resentment;  and  all  that 
I  could  obtain  was,  that  the  one  who  should  deliver  you 
from  my  power  should  become  your  husband.  These  are 
their  portraits/  added  the  fairy,  handing  to  me  two 
golden  cases;  'you  will  know  them  by  their  likenesses; 
and  if  one  of  them  come  to  deliver  you,  it  is  necessary 
that  he  should  promise  to  marry  you  in  your  present  con- 
dition; and  in  order  that  you  may  quit  it,  he  must  tear 
off  all  your  scales  one  by  one,  otherwise  you  will  remain 
half  a  fish  all  your  life.  My  nephew  will  not  have  the 
slightest  objection  to  this  proposition;  but  with  regard  to 
the  protege  of  Effulgent,  he  will  not  at  all  like  the  latter 
condition,  for  he  appears  to  me  to  be  a  very  delicate 
young  gentleman.  Employ,  then,  your  utmost  address 
to  make  him  scale  you;  and  that  achieved,  your  misfor- 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALKS.  307 

tunes  will  cease;  if,  indeed,  it  be  a  misfortune  to  be  a 
very  beautiful  whale,  fat,  and  well-fed,  with  water  up  to 
your  neck.' 

"This  speech,  to  which  I  made  no  reply,  made  me 
very  sorrowful,  both  on  account  of  my  metamorphosis, 
and  of  the  scaling  I  was  doomed  to  undergo. 

"Marmotta  disappeared,  leaving  us  the  two  boxes 
which  contained  the  portraits.  I  was  weeping  at  the 
thoughts  of  my  unfortunate  situation,  quite  regardless  of 
the  boxes,  when  the  kind  and  compassionate  Citronetta 
said:  'Come,  let  us  not  lament  misfortunes  which  it  is 
not  in  our  power  to  remedy.  Let  us  amuse  ourselves  by 
examining  the  portraits.'  With  that  she  opened  one  of 
the  two  boxes,  and  showing  it  to  me,  we  both  uttered  a 
shriek  of  horror  on  seeing  the  portrait  of  an  ugly  Whit- 
ing, on  which,  however,  the  artist  had  bestowed  as  much 
beauty  as  he  could;  but  still,  never  in  the  memory  of 
man  was  anything  seen  so  frightful.  'Take  the  detest- 
able object  from  my  sight,'  said  I,  'I  cannot  endure  to 
look  on  it  longer.  1  would  sooner  remain  a  whale  all  my 
life  than  marry  the  horrible  Whiting.'  My  companion 
did  not  give  me  time  to  finish  my  imprecations  on  the 
monster:  'See,'. said  shr,  'look  at  this  young  beauty;  I 
declare  that  he  may  scale  you  whenever  he  chooses,  and 
you  will  be  but  too  happy  to  suffer  by  his  hands!'  I 
quickly  turned  to  see  if  what  she  stated  were  true,  and 
was  but  too  soon  convinced.  A  handsome  and  agreeable 
countenance  presented  itself  to  my  sight;  tender  and  ex- 
pressive eyes  gave  a  finishing  charm  to  a  set  of  features 
in  themselves  noble  and  majestic.  I  gazed  on  this  charm- 
ing portrait  with  a  pleasure  of  which  I  was  myself  uncon- 
scious and  which  I  had  never  felt  till  then.  Citronetta 
was  the  first  to  remark  it.  'In  good  faith,'  said  she,  'our 
choice  is  soon  made.'  I  awakened  the  good-natured  Cit- 
ronetta twenty  times  in  the  course  of  the  night  to  con- 
verse with  her  about  my  prince;  and  she  soon  found  out 
his  name  for  me,  and  informed  me  that  he  huntea  almost 
every  day  in  the  forest  under  which  I  was  incarcerated. 
She  proposed  to  me  that  she  should  try  to  entice  him  to 
our  abode;  but  I  would  not  consent,  although  I  was 
dying  with  anxiety  to  see  it  accomplished. 

"One  day  when  I  was  more  low-spirited  than  usual,  for 
love  has  this  peculiarity,  that  it  disposes  the  tender  heart 


308  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

to  melancholy,  I  saw  the  frightful  Marmotta  enter  the 
saloon,  accompanied  by  two  persons  whom  I  did  not  im- 
mediately recognize.  It  instantly  struck  me  that  she 
was  bringing  her  unlucky  nephew,  and  I  uttered  fright- 
ful cries.  They  hastened  up  to  me,  and  I  heard  the 
wicked  Marmotta  say:  'Why,  she  could  not  make  more 
noise  if  they  were  scaling  her;  she  cries  out  before  she  is 
hurt.  'Good  heavens,  sister!'  said  one  of  the  persons 
who  accompanied  her,  and  in  whom  I  recognized  with 
joy  the  two  fairies  who  had  formerly  visited  my  father's 
cottage,  4let  us  hear  no  more  for  the  present  about  the 
scaling,  but  let  us  tell  Minikin  what  we  have  got  to  say 
to  her/  'Oh!  by  all  means,'  said  Marmotta,  'but  you 
know  the  conditions.' 

"The  good  fairy,  without  heeding  or  replying  to  her 
words,  spoke  to  me  as  follows:  'Minikin,  we  are  too  much 
afflicted  by  your  unhappy  condition  not  to  endeavor  to 
change  it,  and  especially  as  you  have  not  deserved  it.  I 
and  my  sisters  have  therefore  determined  to  lighten  your 
misfortune  as  much  as  maybe  in  our  power.  Our  scheme 
is  this:  you  are  going  to  be  presented  at  the  court  of  the 
prince  to  whom  I  have  destined  you  from  your  cradle; 
but,  my  dear  child,  you  will  not  appear  there  in  your 
present  form,  although  you  are  destined  to  return  to  it 
three  times  a  week,  and  pass  the  night  in  your  tub;  for, 
until  you  are  married ' 

"  'And  scaled/  interrupted  the  hideous  Marmotta, 
with  a  sardonic  grin. 

"The  good  fairy  turned  toward  her,  shrugged  up  her 
shoulders,  and  immediately  continued:  'For  until  you 
are  married  you  will  remain  a  whale  here.  More  than 
this  we  cannot  tell  you;  but  you  will  learn  all  in  good 
time.  Above  all,  be  very  careful  to  keep  your  secret;  for 
if  a  single  word  escape  you  which  has  a  tendency  to  make 
it  known,  neither  I  nor  my  sisters  can  assist  you  more; 
and  you  will  be  wholly  in  the  power  of  my  sister  Mar- 
motta.' 

"  'Which  she  will  be/  said  that  wicked  fairy,  'I  al- 
ready see  her  in  my  clutches;  a  secret  kept  by  a  girl, 
indeed,  would  be  a  phenomenon!' 

'That  is  her  business,'  said  Effulgent  (for  it  was  she 
who  had  been  speaking  to  me  ull  along).  'As  to  the 
rest,  my  daughter,'  she  continued,  'you  will  be  changed 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  309 

into  a  little  enamel  doll,  but  will  retain  both  reason  and 
speech,  and  we  will  preserve  your  real  features;  and  now 
I  give  you  a  week  to  consider  whether  what  I  have 
proposed  be  agreeable  to  you/ 

"There  wanted  only  one  day  to  the  fairies'  appoint- 
ment when  Citronetta^  who  had  assumed  the  shape  of  a 
wild  boar,  and  had  gone  to  the  forest  to  procure  me  news 
of  Zirphil,  returned,  followed  by  that  too  amiable  prince. 
I  cannot  express  to  you  my  joy  at  seeing  'him;  there  are 
no  words  expressive  enough  to  convey  even  a  distant 
idea  of  what  I  felt.  But  what  delighted  me  most  was  to 
perceive  that  the  prince  appeared  enchanted  with  me;  at 
least,  I  inferred  so  from  his  looks.  Citronetta,  more 
anxious  for  my  happiness  than  for  our  momentary  trans- 
port, dissipated  it  by  proposing  to  Prince  Zirphil  to 
marry  me  or  to  scale  me.  Brought  back  to  recollection, 
and  feeling  the  danger  of  our  situation,  I  joined  my 
tears  and  entreaties  to  Citronetta's;  and  by  our  supplica- 
tions we  induced  the  prince  to  pledge  to  me  his  faith. 
We  had  no  sooner  exchanged  rings  than  he  vanished  un- 
accountably from  my  sigh  ;  and  I  found  myself  in  my 
proper  shape,  lying  in  a  comfortable  bed.  I  was  no 
longer  troubled  with  the  thoughts  of  being  metamor- 
phosed; still  I  was  confined  in  the  bowels  of  the  earth,  in 
the  green  marble  saloon,  and  Citronetta  had  lost  the 
power  of  quitting  it  and  of  transforming  herself. 

"I  expected  the  return  of  the  fairies  with  fear  and 
trembling.  Marmotta  appeared  at  daybreak,  unaccom- 
panied by  Effulgent  or  her  companion,  and  not  looking 
more  angry  than  usual.  She  touched  me  with  her  wand, 
without  saying  a  word,  and  I  became  a  charming  little 
doll;  when,  having  put  me  in  her  toothpick  case,  she 
transported  herself  to  the  palace  of  the  queen,  my  hus- 
band's mother.  She  gave  me  to  her,  with  orders  to  es- 
pouse me  to  her  son,  or  expect  all  the  misfortunes  that 
lay  in  her,  Marmotta's,  power  to  draw  upon  her;  adding 
that  I  was  her  god-daughter  and  called  the  Princess  Min- 
ikin. I  conceived  a  very  strong  friendship  for  my 
mother-in-law;.  I  loved  her  for  her  good  qualities,  inde- 
pendent of  her  being  the  mother  of  my  adored  Zirphil; 
and  I  was  blessed  with  her  friendship  in  return.  I  was 
transported,  however,  every  night  to  the  green  marble 
saloon,  in  company  with  my  husband.  I  cannot  divine 


310  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

why  I  was  forbidden  to  tell  him  my  secret,  since  I  was 
married  to  him;  however,  I  did  keep  it,  notwithstanding 
Zirphil's  impatience  to  learn  it. 

"You  are  about  to  see/'  continued  the  speaker,  sigh- 
ing, "that  it  is  impossible  to  avoid  the  doom  of  fate. 
However,"  she  added,  "it  is  nearly  daybreak,  and  I  am 
dreadfully  fatigued  with  being  so  long  out  of  the  water; 
so  let  me  return  to  the  pond,  and  to-morrow,  at  the  same 
hour,  if  we  are  not  chosen  for  the  broth  of  the  wretched 
King  of  the  Whitings,  we  will  resume  the  thread  of  my 
story.  Come,  let  us  be  moving." 

Zirphil  heard  no  more,  and  returned  to  his  apartment, 
very  sorrowful  at  not  having  apprised  his  princess  that 
he  was  so  near  her:  but  the  fear  of  increasing  her  mis- 
fortunes by  his  indiscretion  consoled  him  for  not  having 
attempted  to  do  so:  however,  the  dread  of  her  perishing 
by  his  own  hands  made  him  resolve  to  resume  his  in- 
quiries among  the  crawfish,  and  to  learn  their  histories. 

Prince  Zirphil  went  to  bed,  but  not  to  sleep:  he  could 
not  close  his  eyes  all  night.  To  have  discovered  his 
princess,  to  see  her  in  the  shape  of  a  crawfish,  and  in 
danger  of  being  sacrificed  to  appease  the  appetite  of  the 
King  of  the  Whitings,  seemed  to  the  prince  to  be  a  more 
dreadful  punishment  than  the  death  to  which  he  believed 
she  was  destined.  He  was  in  a  cruel  state  of  agitation, 
when  a  loud  noise  was  heard  in  the  garden.  At  first 
Zirphil  only  heard  it  faintly;  but,  on  listening,  he  dis- 
tinguished the  sounds  of  flutes  and  conch-shells.  He 
sprang  out  of  bed  and  looked  through  the  window,  when 
he  saw  the  King  of  the  Whitings,  accompanied  by  the 
twelve  men-sharks  who  composed  his  council,  walking 
in  the  direction  of  his  pavilion.  Zirphil  hastened  to  open 
the  door;  and,  the  procession  having  entered,  the  king, 
in  the  first  place,  had  his  tub  refilled  with  fresh  sea- 
water  by  the  lords  who  were  carrying  him;  then,  after 
a  few  minutes'  rest,  he  took  his  place  in  the  council,  and 
addressed  the  young  prince  as  follows:  "Whoever  you 
may  be,  you  are  apparently  resolved  that  I  shall  die  of 
hunger;  for  you  send  me  day  after  day  such  wretched 
broth  that  I  cannot  swallow  a  spoonful."  Then  turning 
to  an  attendant  his  majesty  added :  "Go  to  my  kitchen  and 
bring  the  crawfish  mortar;  I  would  regale  the  council." 
A  man-pike  immediately  ran  and  fetched  what  the  king 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  311 

desired;  and  while  he  was  gone  the  twelve  men-sharks 
took  a  large  net  and  cast  it  through  the  window  into  the 
pond,  catching  three  or  four  thousand  crawfish. 

During  the  interval  in  which  the  council  was  employed 
fishing,  and  while  the  man-pike  was  gone  for  the  king's 
pestle  and  mortar,  Zirphil  was  absorbed  in  reflection;  he 
felt  that  the  most  critical  moment  of  his  whole  life  was 
at  hand,  and  that  the  question  of  his  happiness  or  misery 
was  about  to  be  determined;  but,  summoning  all  his 


fortitude  and  resolution,  he  prepared  to  obey  the  king. 
The  council  ceremoniously  presented  the  crawfish,  and 
the  prince  attempted  to  pound  some  of  them;  but  a  sim- 
ilar adventure  happened  with  these  as  had  occurred  with 
those  which  he  had  attempted  to  pound  in  the  kitchen: 
the  bottom  of  the  mortar  opened,  and  flames  devoured 
them.  The  King  of  the  Whitings  and  his  rascally  cour- 
tiers amused  themselves  for  a  long  time  with  the  extraor- 
dinary spectacle;  taking  great  pains,  and  apparently 
receiving  much  pleasure,  in  continually  refilling  the  mor- 
tar, until  at  last  there  was  only  one  of  the  four  thousand 


312  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

crawfish  remaining;  this  was  so  large  and  plump  that  it  was 
charming  to  look  upon.  The  king  gave  orders  that  some 
one  should  shell  it,  in  order  that  he  might  eat  some  por- 
tion of  this,  at  least;  and  it  was  accordingly  handed  to 
Zirphil,  who  was  not  a  little  grieved  at  this  new  cruelty; 
but  his  grief  was  redoubled  when  he  saw  the  poor  craw- 
fish join  its  two  claws;  and  when,  its  eyes  streaming  with 
tears,  it  said  to  him:  "Alas!  Zirphil,  what  have  I  done  to 
you,  that  you  are  about  to  treat  me  so  cruelly  ?"  The 
prince,  deeply  moved  by  the  words,  and  with  a  heart 
pierced  with  grief,  looked  sorrowfully  at  the  crawfish;  at 
last  he  took  upon  himself  to  entreat  the  king  to  allow  it 
to  be  pounded.  The  king,  jealous  of  his  authority,  and 
unshaken  in  his  resolution,  was  inflamed  with  anger  at 
this  humble  petition;  and  threatened  to  have  Zirphil  him- 
self pounded  if  he  did  not  immediately  shell  the  craw- 
fish. The  poor  prince  again  took  it  from  the  hands  of 
one  of  the  men-sharks  to  whom  he  had  intrusted  it,  and, 
with  a  little  knife  which  was  handed  to  him,  began  to 
shell  it;  but  no  sooner  had  the  knife  touched  it,  than  the 
crawfish  uttered  so  piercing  a  cry  that  the  prince  turned 
away  his  eyes,  and  could  no  longer  repress  his  tears. 
After  awhile,  however,  he  continued  his  disagreeable 
task;  but,  to  his  astonishment,  before  he  had  well  fin- 
ished shelling  the  crawfish,  it  changed  in  his  hands  to 
the  vile  Marmotta;  who,  leaping  on  the  floor,  convulsed 
with  loud  and  disagreeable  laughter,  mocksd  at  Zirphil's 
grief.  The  prince,  however,  was  at  sight  of  her  relieved 
from  the  oppressive  fear  under  which  he  had  been  labor- 
ing, and  which  had  nearly  made  him  swoon. 

The  king,  in  astonishment,  cried  out:  "What!  is  it 
possible  that  I  behold  my  aunt?" 

"Yes,  truly,  it  is  herself,"  said  the  tormenting  crea- 
ture. "But,  my  dear  Whiting,  I  have  come  to  inform  you 
of  terrible  news."  His  majesty  turned  pale  on  hearing 
these  words,  and  the  council  assumed  an  air  of  satisfac- 
tion which  quite  disconcerted  the  king  and  his  frightful 
aunt.  "It  is  all  over,  my  darling,"  continued  Marmotta, 
"and  you  must  return  to  your  watery  kingdom;  for  this 
obstinate  creature  has  taken  it  into  his  head  to  be  so 
ridiculously  constant  that  I  can  do  nothing  with  him. 
Ue  has  avoided  all  the  snares  that  I  laid  in  his  way  in  the 
hope  of  diverting  him  from  his  determination  to  carry 
ofi  the  princess,  whom  otherwise  I  had  destined  for  you»" 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  313 

On  hearing  these  words  the  King  of  the  Whitings  went 
into  such  an  excess  of  fury  that  words  cannot  describe  it; 
he  committed  a  thousand  extravagances,  which  made  it 
very  apparent  that  he  was  the  prey  of  violent  and  un- 
governable passions.  Marmotta  in  vain  attempted  to 
appease  him;  neither  threats  nor  entreaties  could  prevail; 
he  broke  his  china  bowl  in  a  thousand  pieces,  when,  all 
the  water  escaping,  he  swooned  away.  Marmotta,  beside 
herself  with  anger,  then  turned  to  Zirphil,  who  had  been 
a  passive  spectator  of  the  violent  scene,  and  said:  "You 
have  conquered,  Zirphil,  by  the  assistance  of  a  fairy  who 
is  my  superior  in  power;  but  all  your  sorrows  are  not  yet 
over;  you  cannot  be  happy  until  after  you  have  restored 
to  my  possession  the  case  which  contained  the  unlucky 
Minikin:  Effulgent  herself  has  granted  me  that;  and  I 
have  obtained  from  her  that  you  shall  suffer  until  then." 
With  these  words  she  threw  the  King  of  the  Whitings 
over  her  shoulders  and  bundled  him  into  the  lake,  to- 
gether with  the  men-sharks,  the  palace  and  all  its  inhab- 
itants; and  in  a  moment  Zirphil  found  himself  alone  at 
the  foot  of  a  high  mountain,  which  stood  in  the  midst 
of  a  large  desert  in  which  there  was  not  the  least  sign  of 
vegetation,  nor  of  a  human  habitation.  He  looked"  in 
vain  for  the  lake  and  the  palace;  all  had  disappeared  at 
once.  The  prince  was  more  afflicted  than  astonished  at 
so  extraordinary'an  event;  he  had  become  familiarized  with 
prodigies,  and  was  only  sensible  of  the  grief  caused  him 
by  Marmotta's  persecution. 

"I  cannot  doubt,"  soliloquized  Zirphil,  "that  I  have 
pounded  my  princess;  yes,  I  have  pounded  her,  and  am 
no  happier  than  I  was  before.  Ah!  barbarous  Marmotta! 
and  you,  Effulgent  too!  even  you  leave  me  without  as- 
sistance, after  I  have  obeyed  you  at  the  sacrifice  of  all 
that  so  sensitive  a  heart  as  mine  holds  dear."  His  grief, 
and  the  weariness  consequent  on  his  having  passed  the 
previous  night  in  the  grove,  made  him  feel  so  excess- 
ively faint  that  he  would  have  most  probably  perished, 
but  that  his  courage  wasunequaled,  and  his  love  inspired 
him  with  a  wish  to  live. 

After  walking  onward  for  a  long  while,  our  prince 
came  to  the  brink  of  a  well  which  was  cut  through  the 
rock.  Here  Zirphil  sat  down  to  rest  himself,  and  began 
again  to  call  on  his  protectress:  "Oh!  Effulgent,"  said 


314  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

he,  "have  yon  deserted  me?0  After  repeating  these 
words  several  times  he  heard  a  voice,  proceeding  from 
the  well,  say: 

"If  Zirphil  is  there,  let  him  speak  to  me." 

The  prince's  joy  at  hearing  this  voice  was  increased  by 
a  hope  that  he  recognized  it  as  one  to  which  his  ear  had 
been  accustomed.  He  sprang  to  the  brink,  and  .an- 
swered, therefore:  "Yes,  I  am  Zirphil;  and  you,  are  you 
not  Citronetta?" 

"I  am,"  said  the  voice;  and  Citronetta  immediately 
arose  from  the  well  and  embraced  the  prince.  Words 
cannot  paint  Zirphil's  joy  at  seeing  her;  he  overwhelmed 
her  with  questions  relative  to  herself  and  the  princess; 
and  it  was  some  time  before,  the  transport  occasioned  by 
their  meeting  being  over,  they  spoke  more  rationally. 

"I  am  about  to  communicate  to  you,"  said  Citronetta, 
"all  that  you  are  anxious  to  learn.  Since  you  pounded 
us,  we  have  enjoyed  a  happiness  which  your  absence  alone 
renders  incomplete;  and  I  was  here  awaiting  your  arrival, 
by  the  directions  of  the  Fairy  Effulgent,  that  I  might  in- 
struct you  as  to  what  remains  for  you  to  do,  in  order  to 
become  the  happy  possessor,  without  further  trouble  or 
fear,  of  a  princess  whose  love  for  you  equals  that  which  I 
know  you  feel  for  her;  but,  as  some  time  must  of  neces- 
sity elapse  before  you  can  arrive  at  that  happiness,  I  will 
do  myself  the  pleasure  to  relate  to  you  that  part  of  the 
wonderful  history  of  your  amiable  spouse  of  which  you 
are  as  yet  unapprised." 

Zirphil  kissed  repeatedly  the  hands  of  Citronetta,  in 
token  of  his  thanks,  and  followed  her  into  her  grotto,  at 
the  sight  of  which  he  was  overcome  with  tender  recollec- 
tions, when  he  recognized  it  as  the  saloon  in  which  he 
had  for  the  first  time  seen  his  adored  whale-princess.  At 
last,  having  seated  himself,  and  partaken  of  a  repast 
which  was  furnished  for  him  by  his  ring,  he  requested 
the  good  Citronetta  to  resume  the  history  from  the 
place  where  the  princess  had  finished  her  narration. 

"As  Effulgent  will  come  to  seek  you  here,"  said  the 
nymph,  "you  shall  in  the  meantime  learn  all  that  you 
wish  to  know.  Know,  then,  that  the  Fairy  Marmotta  was 
notignorant  of  your  marriage;  but  she  had  transformed  our 
mutual  friend  into  an  enamel  doll,  thinking  that  you  would 
be  disgusted  with  her  in  that  shape.  Effulgent  herself  was, 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  315 

however,  as  you  have  heard,  at  the  bottom  of  that  affair, 
and  well  knew  that  no  power  could  deprive  you  of  the  prin- 
cess if  you  married  her  or  destroyed  her  enchantment  by 
scaling  her.  You  married  her,  and  you  know  what  has 
since  taken  place.  The  last  time  that  you  saw  the  prin- 
cess and  myself,  we  were  transformed  into  crawfish,  and 
placed  in  a  little  basket  made  of  rushes,  which  Marmotta 
hung  on  her  arm,  when  seating  herself  in  a  chariot 
drawn  by  two  adders,  we  were  speedily  conveyed  to  the 
palace  of  the  King  of  the  Whitings.  This  palace  had 
formerly  belonged  to  the  king  who  is  the  father  of  your 
princess;  the  city,  changed  into  a  lake,  formed  the  place 
which  we  have  inhabited  ever  since;  and  all  the  men-fish 
whom  you  saw  were  the  wicked  subjects  of  that  good 
king.  The  latter  requesting  to  be  made  yeoman  of  the 
kitchen  and  keeper  of  the  pestle  and  mortar  to  the  King 
of  the  Whitings,  Effulgent  gratified  him,  by  giving  him  a 
tap  with  her  wand,  when  he  immediately  became  a  man- 
pike,  such  as  you  saw  him  in  the  discharge  of  his  duty: 
now  you  need  no  longer  be  surprised  at  the  tears  you  saw 
him  shed  when  you  brought  the  crawfish  to  be  pounded; 
for,  as  he  knew  that  his  daughter  had  to  undergo  that 
punishment,  he  always  feared  that  she  might  be  among 
those  which  you  brought  him  from  time  to  time;  and  the 
unfortunate  king  had  not  a  moment's  peace,  because  his 
daughter  had  no  means  of  making  herself  known  to  him. 
For  the  queen,  she  requested  to  be  transformed  into  a 
crawfish  in  order  to  be  with  the  princess,  and  her  wish 
was  likewise  granted.  With  regard  to  ourselves,  when 
we  arrived  at  the  palace  the  fairy  presented  us  to  the 
King  of  the  Whitings,  and  commanded  him  to  have  a 
basin  of  crawfish  broth  prepared  every  day.  After 
which  order  we  were  thrown  into  the  pond  among  the 
rest. 

"At  length  you  arrived,  and  we  were  presented  to  you; 
but  we  were  not  permitted  to  make  ourselves  known  un- 
less you  should  interrogate  us;  and  we  dared  not  infringe 
the  law,  so  tired  we  were  of  submitting  to  its  rigor,  for 
having  formerly  disobeyed  it  in  mere  trifles.  We  were 
selected  by  you  one  morning,  I  and  the  queen;  and  we 
had  not  time  to  bid  the  princess  adieu?  ere  you  carried  us 
to  the  kitchen.  We  had  scarcely  touched  the  bottom  of 
the  fatal  mortar,  when  Effulgent  herself  came  to  save 


316  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

us;  and,  on  restoring  me  to  my  proper  shape,  she  trans- 

Eorted  me  to  this,  my  usual  residence.  I  had  the  conso- 
ition  of  seeing  the  queen  and  our  companions  likewise 
restored  to  their  proper  persons;  but  I  do  not  know  what 
has  become  of  them.  The  fairy  embraced  me,  and  told 
me  to  await  you  here,  and  inform  you  of  all  that  I  have 
just  told  you  when  you  should  arrive  here  in  search  of 
the  princess.  I  had  been  looking  forward  to  the  present 
moment  with  impatience,  as  you  may  well  believe,  sir," 
continued  Citronetta  to  Prince  Zirphil,  who  was  listening 
to  her  attentively,  "until,  at  last,  yesterday,  just  as  I  had 
seated  myself  at  the  mouth  of  my  well,  Effulgent  ap- 
peared. 'Our  children  will  soon  be  happy,'  said  she  to 
me,  'my  dear  Citronetta;  Zirphil  must  restore  to  Mar- 
motta  her  case,  as  an  end  to  his  labors,  for  he  has  scaled 
the  princess.'  'Ah,  great  queen!'  cried  I,  'are  we 
then  so  happy  as  to  have  an  end  to  our  fears?'  'Yes/ 
said  she,  'you  are,  indeed;  Zirphil  thinks  he  has  only 
scaled  Marmotta;  but  he  has  in  reality  scaled  the  prin- 
cess, as  Marmotta,  being  concealed  in  the  handle  of  the 
knife  wherewith  he  performed  his  terrible  sacrifice  at  the 
moment  that  he  finished  shelling  the  crawfish,  rendered 
the  princess  invisible  to  his  eyes,  and  substituted  herself, 
Marmotta,  in  her  place.'  ; 

"What!"  exclaimed  Zirphil,  "and  was  it  then  my  charm- 
ing princess  to  whom  I  acted  with  so  much  cruelty? 
Alas!  have  I  been  barbarous  enough  to  make  her  suffer 
this  cruel  punishment?  0  heavens!  she  will  never  for- 
give me,  nor  do  I  deserve  her  forgiveness!"  The 
unhappy  Zirphil  spoke  so  wildly,  and  appeared  so  griev- 
ously afflicted,  that  the  poor  Citronetta  was  herself 
relieved  that  she  had  communicated  to  him  this  cruel 
piece  of  intelligence. 

"So,"  said  she  at  last,  seeing  the  prince  in  a  reverie — 
"so  you  did  not  know  this?" 

"I  did  not,  indeed,"  answered  Zirphil;  "for  had  I 
known  it  was  my  princess  I  would  rather  have  stabbed 
myself  to  the  heart  with  the  unlucky  knife." 

"But  reflect,"  said  Citronetta,  "that  if  you  had  stabbed 
yourself  to  the  heart,  the  princess  would  have  remained 
forever  in  the  power  of  her  enemy  and  of  your  detested 
rival,  and  that  it  is  much  better  to  have  shelled  her 
than,  by  killing  yourself,  to  have  allowed  her  to  remain 
miserable." 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  317 

This  last  argument,  founded  on  the  real  state  of  the 
question,  soothed  the  prince's  grief,  and  Citronetta  pre- 
vailed on  him  to  take  a  little  food  to  keep  himself  alive. 
Just  as  they  had  finished  their  little  repast  the  vault  of  the 
saloon  opened,  and  Effulgent  appeared,  seated  in  a  car 
made  of  a  large  carbuncle,  and  drawn  by  a  hundred  but- 
terflies. She  alighted,  assisted  by  the  prince,  who  bathed 
the  hem  of  her  robe  with  a  torrent  of  tears.  The  fairy 
raised  him  and  said: 

"Prince  Zirphil,  you  will  this  day  reap  the  fruit  of  your 
heroic  actions.  Be  comforted;  at  last  you  will  enjoy  true 
happiness.  I  have  overcome  the  fury  of  Marmotta  by  my 
entreaties,  and  your  fortitude  has  disarmed  her;  come 
with  me  to  receive  your  princess  from  her  hands  and 
mine." 

"Ah!  gracious  madam,"  cried  the  prince,  throwing 
himself  on  his  knees,  "am  I  not  in  a  dream?  is  it  possi- 
ble that  so  much  happiness  can  be  real?" 

"Do  not  doubt  it,"  said  the  fairy;  "come  with  me,  sir, 
to  your  kingdom  to  console  the  queen  your  mother,  for 
your  absence,  and  for  the  death  of  the  king  your  father; 
your  subjects  are  impatient  to  crown  you." 

The  prince  felt,  notwithstanding  his 'joy,  a  very  lively 
grief  on  hearing  the  news  of  the  king  his  father's  death; 
but  the  fairy,  to  withdraw  him  from  his  sorrow,  seated  him 
by  her  side  in  her  car,  and  allowed  Citronetta  to  establish 
herself  at  their  feet;  then  her  butterflies  displayed  their 
brilliant  wings  and  took  the  direction  of  Zirphil's  domin- 
ions. On  their  route  the  fairy  desired  him  to  look  inside 
his  ring;  he  did  so,  and  found  in  it  the  case  that  he  had  to 
restore  to  Marmotta.  The  prince  thanked  the  generous 
Effulgent  a  thousand  times,  and  they  presently  arrived 
at  the  kingdom,  where  they  were  awaited  with  so  much 
impatience.  The  queen,  Zirphii's  mother,  came  to  assist 
the  fairy  to  alight  from  her  car,  and  all  the  people,  on 
being  instructed  of  the  prince's  return,  made  such  long 
and  hearty  acclamations  that  they  partly  dissipated  the 
prince's  grief.  He  tenderly  embraced  t'he  queen,  and 
they  adjourned  to  a  magnificent  apartment  prepared  by 
her  majesty  for  their  reception,  which  they  had  no  sooner 
entered  than  Marmotta  arrived  in  a  little  chariot  lined 
with  Spanish  leather,  drawn  by  winged  white  rats.  She 
brought  with  her  the  fair  Minikin,  in  all  the  beauty  of  her 


318  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

natural  figure,  together  with  the  king  and  queen,  her 
father  and  mother.  Effulgent  and  ZirphiPs  mother  went 
out  to  receive  and  embrace  Marmotta,  and  the  prince, 
walking  respectfully  up  to  her,  presented  the  toothpick 
case  and  kissed  her  paw,  which  she  extended  to  him  with 
a  gracious  smile.  Marmotta  then  permitted  Zirphil  to 
embrace  his  wife  and  to  present  her  to  his  parent,  who 
embraced  her  with  transports  of  the  most  lively  affection. 
A  general  interchange  of  civilities  then  took  place  among 
the  numerous  persons  comprising  this  illustrious  assem- 
blage, and  joy  reigned  in  every  breast.  Minikin  and  her 
charming  husband  alone  spoke  not,  so  much  as  they  had 
to  say  to  each  other;  their  silence  had  a  certain  touching 
eloquence  which  affected  every  one  present.  The  good 
Citronetta  shed  tears  of  joy  as  she  kissed  the  hands  of 
her  divine  princess. 

At  last  Effulgent  took  them  both  by  the  hand,  and 
leading  them  to  the  queen,  Zirphil's  mother:  "Behold, 
madam,"  said  she,  "two  young  lovers,  who  only  await 
yonr  consent  to  complete  their  happiness;  my  sister,  the 
illustrious  king  and  queen  here  present,  and  myself,  all 
join  to  request  its  fulfillment."  The  queen,  of  course, 
consented  in  terms  suitable  to  so  polite  a  speech. 

Then  Marmotta  touched  the  fair  Minikin  with  her 
wand,  and  her  dress,  which  before  had  been  magnificent, 
was  immediately  changed  into  one  of  silver  brocade, 
embroidered  all  over  with  gold,  and  her  beautiful  hair 
instantly  arranged  itself  into  a  coiffure  of  such  exquisite 
taste  that  the  kings  and  queens  declared  her  dazzling 
charms  to  be  absolutely  perfect.  In  the  meanwhile  the 
toothpick  case,  which  the  fairy  held  in  her  hand,  became 
a  crown  of  brillant  diamonds,  so  beautifully  set  and  so 
bright  that  the  apartment  and  all  the  palace  received  a 
new  luster,  as  Marmotta  placed  it  on  the  princess'  head. 
The  prince  in  his  turn  was  dressed  in  a  suit  which  per- 
fectly matched  with  Minikin's  attire,  and  from  the  ring 
which  he  had  received  from  that  princess  there  issued  a 
crown  exactly  like  hers.  They  were  immediately  mar- 
ried, and  proclaimed  king  and  queen  of  that  fine  country. 
The  fairies  provided  the  royal  banquet,  at  which,  as  may 
be  expected  by  those  who  know  their  extreme  liberality, 
nothing  was  wanting.  After  staying  a  week  with  the 
jouug  king  and  queen,  and  loading  them  with  gifts,  they 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  319 

departed,  and  restored  Minikin's  father  and  mother  to 
their  kingdom:  the  inhabitants  of  which  had  been  so 
severely  punished  for  their  faults  that  they  had  become  a 
loyal  and  faithful  people.  With  regard  to  Citronetta, 
the  fairies  gave  her  permission  to  spend  some  time  with 
her  beloved  mistress,  and  also  arranged  that  Minikin,  by 
expressing  a  wish,  might  have  the  pleasure  of  seeing  the 
nymph  whenever  she  pleased. 


The  fairies  having  taken  their  departure,  never  were 
two  persons  so  happy  as  King  Zirphil  and  Queen  Minikin. 
Their  felicity  was  in  themselves  and  in  each  other,  and 
their  days  flew  by  unmarked  in  their  course,  for  all  was 
joy.  They  had  children,  who  blessed  them  by  their  good- 
ness, and  they  attained  an  extreme  old  age:  their  mutual 
affection  and  desire  of  pleasing  each  other  increasing  with 
their  years.  After  their  decease  their  kingdom  was  di- 
vided, and  after  innumerable  vicissitudes  it  has  become, 
under  one  of  their  descendants,  the  flourishing  empire  of 
the  great  Mogul. 


PRINCE   CHERRY. 

THERE  was  once  upon  a  time  a  kifig  who  was  so  praise- 
worthy and  irreproachable  in  his  conduct  that  his  sub- 
jects called  him  "King  Good/'  One  day  as  he  was  hunt- 


320 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


ing,  a  little  white  rabbit,  being  closely  pursued  by  the 
hounds,  threw  itself  into  his  arms.  The  king  stroked 
the  little  rabbit  and  said:  "Since  you  have  placed  your- 
self under  my  protection  I  will  not  see  you  hurt."'  He 
carried  the  rabbit  to  his  palace  and  had  a  pretty  little 
house  made  for  it,  and  gave  it  nice  herbs  to  eat.  In  the 
night,  while  the  king  was  alone  in  his  chamber,  suddenly 
a  beautiful  lady  appeared.  She  wore  neither  gold  nor 
silver,  but  her  gown  was  white  as  snow,  and  her  head  was 


crowned  with  a  wreath  of  white  roses.  The  good  king  was 
very  much  surprised  to  see  this  lady,  for  his  door  was 
closed,  and  he  was  puzzling  himself  to  conceive  how  she 
had  found  an  entrance,  when  she  said  to  him:  "I  am  the 
Fairy  Candid.  Passing  through  the  wood  while  you  were 
hunting,  I  was  curious  to  know  if  you  were  as  good  as 
everybody  says  you  are.  To  ascertain  this  I  assumed  the 
shape  of  a  little  rabbit  and  took  refuge  in  your  arms,  for 
I  was  sure  that  he  who  would  pity  a  little  rabbit  could 
not  be  unmerciful  to  his  fellow-creatures;  while,  had  you 
refused  me  your  protection,  I  should  have  concluded  that 
with  all  your  show  of  goodness  you  were  wicked  in  your 
heart.  I  am  come  to  thank  you  for  your  kind  offices  to 
me,  and  to  assure  you  that  I  will  always  be  your  friend 
You  may  command  me  in  all  things  within  my  power, 
and  I  promise  to  grant  you  all  you  desiro  " 


OLD.  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 


321 


"Madam,"  said  King  Good,  "since  you  are  a  fairy  you 
ought  to  know  all  my  wishes.  However,  I  have  an  only 
son,  of  whom  I  am  very  fond,  and  who  is  called  Prince 
Cherry:  if  you  have  any  affection  for  me,  become,  for  my 
sake,  the  friend  and  protectress  of  my  son." 

"Most  willingly,"  said  the  fairy;  "I  can  make  your  son 
the  handsomest,  the  richest,  or  the  most  powerful  prince 
in  the  world:  choose  whichever  of  these  gifts  you  like  best 
for  him." 

"I  desire  none  of  them  for  my  son,"  answered  the  good 


king;  "but  I  will  be  very  much  obliged  to  you  if  you  will 
make  him  the  best  of  all  princes.  Of  what  service  to  him 
would  be  his  beauty,  or  his  riches,  or  the  possession  of 
all  the  kingdoms  in  the  world,  if  he  were  wicked?  You 
know  very^well,  madam,  that  he  would  notwithstanding 
be  unfortunate,  and  that  it  is  the  practice  of  virtue  alone 
which  can  confer  happiness." 

"You  have  well  spoken,"  said  Candid  to  the  king; 
"but  it  is  not  in  my  power  to  make  Prince  Cherry  a  good 
man  in  spite  of  himself:  virtue  must  be  attained;  it  can- 
not be  endowed  or  it  ceases  to  be  a  virtue.  All  that  I 
can  promise  you  is  to  give  him  good  advice,  to  point  out 
his  faults  to  him,  and  to  punish  him  if  he  will  not  correct 
and  punish  himself  by  repentance. v 

King  Good  was  very  well  satisfied  with  this  promise, 
and  shortly  afterward  he  died.  Prince  Cherry  wept  very 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

much  for  his  father,  for  he  loved  him  with  all  his  heart, 
and  would  have  given  all  his  gold,  and  his  silver,  and  all 
his  kingdoms,  to  have  saved  his  father's  life:  but  what 
can  change  the  course  of  fate?  Two  days  after  the  good 
king's  death,  as  Cherry  was  reclining  on  a  sofa,  the  Fairy 
Candid  appeared  to  him.  "I  promised  your  father," 
said  she,  addressing  herself  to  him,  "to  be  your  friend; 
and  to  keep  my  word  I  am  come  to  make  you  a  present." 
She  then  placed  on  Cherry's  linger  a  little  gold  ring,  and 
continued:  "Take  great  care  of  this  ring;  it  is  plain,  but 
it  is  more  precious  than  rubies,  more  valuable  than  dia- 
monds; whenever  you  are  about  to  commit  a  bad  action 
it  will  prick  your  finger;  but  remember  that  if  in  spite 
of  its  warning  you  persevere  in  an  evil  deed,  yon  will  for- 
feit my  friendship;  nay,  I  shall  become  your  enemy." 

As  she  finished  these  words,  Candid  disappeared,  and 
left  Cherry  very  much  astonished  and  delighted  with  his 
present.  He  was  for  some  time  so  wise  and  good  that 
the  ring  did  not  prick  him  at  all,  which  gave  him  so 
cheerful  an  air  that  to  his  name  of  Cherry  was  added  by 
his  subjects  that  of  Happy.  After  awhile,  as  he  was  one 
day  hunting,  he  was  so  unsuccessful  as  not  to  take  any- 
thing whatever.  This  put  him  in  rather  an  ill  humor, 
and  he  thought  that  he  felt  his  ring  pricking  his  finger, 
but  so  gently  that  he  did  not  take  much  notice  of  it.  As 
he  was  returning  to  his  chamber,  his  little  dog  Bibi  ran 
as  usual  to  meet  him,  and  leaped  round  him  to  be  ca- 
ressed; but  the  prince  said,  "Down,  sir;  I  am  not  in  a 
humor  to  play  with  you."  The  poor  little  dog,  who  did 
not  understand  him,  pulled  him  by  his  clothes  to  make 
Cherry  notice  him  at  least.  This  made  Cherry  so  angry 
that  he  gave  the  little  dog  a  heavy  kick,  when  instantly 
the  ring  pricked  him  as  sharply  as  if  it  had  been  a  pin. 
Surprised,  ashamed  and  confused,  he  seated  himself  in  a 
corner  of  his  chamber,  saying  to  himself,  "Surely  the 
fairy  is  making  sport  of  me,  for  what  great  crime  have  I 
committed  in  kicking  an  animal  that  was  teasing  me? 
To  what  purpose  do  I  rule  over  a  large  empire,  if  I  may 
not  even  beat  my  dog?" 

"I  am  not  making  sport  of  you,"  said  a  voice  in  an- 
swer to  the  thoughts  which  were  thus  passing  in  Cherry's 
mind;  "you  have,  instead  of  one,  committed  three  faults. 
You  first  lost  your  temper,  because  you  cannot  bear  to 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES, 

be  crossed,  even  in  trifles,  but  think  that  men  and  beasts 
are  made  to  obey  you.  You  next  put  yourself  in  a  foam- 
ing passion  with  your  dog,  who  could  not  understand 
you,  which  is  very  bad;  and  lastly,  you  were  so  mean- 
spirited  as  to  be  cruel  to  the  poor  animal,  who  did  not 
deserve  ill-treatment.  I  know  that  you  are  much  above 
a  dog;  but  if  it  were  reasonable  and  permitted  for  the 
great  to  ill-treat  those  who  are  beneath  them,  I  could  at 
this  very  moment  beat  or  kill  you,  since  a*  fairy  is  more 
powerful  than  man.  The  advantage  of  being  the  ruler 
of  a  great  empire  does  not  consist  in  the  power  of  com- 
mitting all  the  evils  to  which  we  feel  disposed,  but  in  the 
practice  of  all  the  good  that  lies  within  our  power." 

Cherry,  though  humbled  and  ashamed,  had  not  yet 
lost  his  candor;  he  acknowledged  his  faults  and  promised 
to  correct  them:  he  did  not,  however,  keep  his  word. 
He  had  been  brought  up  by  a  foolish  nurse,  who  had 
spoiled  him  in  his  infancy.  If  he  wanted  anything,  he 
had  only  to  cry,  to  fret,  or  to  stamp  with  his  feet,  and 
the  silly  woman  gave  him  all  that  he  cried,  fretted  or 
stamped  for,  and  thus  had  made  him  passionate  and  ob- 
stinate. She  had  also  told  him,  from  morning  till  night, 
that  he  would  one  day  be  a  king,  and  that  kings  were 
always  very  happy  because  their  subjects  were  bound  to 
obey  and  to  respect  them,  and  because  no  one  could  pre- 
vent their  doing  as  they  pleased.  However,  when 
Cherry  grew  a  little  older,  and  began  to  observe  and 
reflect,  be  became  aware  that  nothing  is  so  odious,  and  par- 
ticularly in  the  highest  stations  of  society,  as  to  be 
proud,  haughty  and  obstinate.  He  made  some  efforts  to 
correct  himself,  but  he  had  contracted  a  bad  habit  of  giv- 
ing way  to  these  faults;  and  a  bad  habit  is  very  difficult 
to  overcome.  He  had  not  naturally  a  bad  heart;  he  cried 
with  vexation  after  committing  a  fault,  and  would  say, 
"How  unfortunate  am  I  to  have  thus  always  to  oppose 
my  anger  and  my  pride!  if  I  had  been  corrected  when  I 
was  young  I  should  not  now  have  so  many  vices  to  over- 
come." 

His  ring  soon  pricked  him  very  often:  sometimes  he 
stopped  at  its  warning,  and  at  others,  continued  his 
course  in  its  despite;  and  what  is  rather  singular  in  the 
construction  of  the  ring  was,  that  it  only  pricked  him 
gently  for  a  slight  fault;  but  when  he  was  very  wicked  it 


324  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

actually  drew  blood  from  his  finger.  At  last,  growing 
impatient  at  its  friendly  severity,  and  wishing  to  be 
wicked  at  his  ease,  he  threw  his  ring  from  him.  He 
thought  himself  the  happiest  of  men  when  he  was  thus 
freed  from  his  admonisher.  He  abandoned  himself  to 
all  the  folly  that  entered  into  his  mind;  so  that  he  be- 
came very  wicked  indeed,  and  was  the  terror  and  the 
disgust  of  his  subjects. 

One  day  as  Cherry  was  walking  in  the  fields  he  saw  a 
young  girl  sitting  by  a  brook,  so  extremely  beautiful  that 
he  at  once  resolved  to  marry  her.  She  was  called  Zelia, 
and  was  as  wise  as  she  was  beautiful.  Cherry  accosted 
her,  thinking  that  Zelia  would  esteem  herself  very  happy 
indeed  to  become  a  great  queen;  but  to  his  astonishment 
she  replied  with  much  frankness  to  his  addresses:  "Sire, 
I  am  but  a  shepherdess,  and  have  no  fortune;  but  not- 
withstanding that  I  will  never  marry  you." 

"Is  my  appearance  then  displeasing  to  you?"  asked 
Cherry,  a  little  moved. 

"No,  my  prince,"  answered  Zelia;  "I  find  you,  as  you 
really  are,  very  handsome.  But  of  what  use  to  me  would 
be  your  beauty,  your  riches,  the  fine  clothes,  the  magnifi- 
cent carriages  that  you  would  give  me,  if  the  evil  actions 
of  which  I  should  daily  witness  the  performance  should 
force  me  to  despise  and  to  hate  you?" 

Cherry  went  into  a  violent  passion  at  this,  and  com- 
manded his  officers  to  conduct  Zelia  forcibly  to  his  palace. 
He  was  occupied  all  day  with  reflections  on  the  contempt 
that  she  had  shown  for  him;  but,  as  he  still  loved  her,  he 
could  not  determine  to  ill-treat  her.  Among  Cherry's 
favorites  was  his  foster-brother,  whom  he  had  placed  in 
his  entire  confidence.  This  man,  whose  inclinations 
were  as  low  as  his  birth,  flattered  his  master's  passions 
and  gave  him  very  bad  advice.  On  seeing  Cherry  very 
sorrowful,  he  asked  him  the  subject  of  his  grief;  and  the 
prince  having  answered  him  that  he  could  not  endure 
Zelia's  contempt,  and  that  he  was  resolved  to  correct  his 
faults,  as  it  was  necessary  for  him  to  become  virtuous  to 
please  her,  that  wicked  man  said  to  him,  "You  are  very 
good  really,  to  be  willing  to  constrain  yourself  for  the 
sake  of  a  little  girl;  if  I  were  in  your  place  I  would  com- 
pel her  to  obey  me.  Remember  that  you  are  king,  and 
that  it  would  be  a  disgrace  for  you  to  submit  to  the 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  325 

caprice  of  a  shepherdess  who  should  be  too  happy  to  be 
admitted  into  the  number  of  your  slaves.  Make  her  fast 
on  bread  and  water;  put  her  into  prison  and,  if  she  re- 
main adverse  to  marrying  you,  put  her  to  a  cruel  death, 
and  thus  teach  others  to  yield  to  your  wishes.  It  would 
be  disgraceful  were  it  known  that  a  simple  shepherdess 
could  turn  yon  from  your  course  or  resist  your  inclina- 
tions: on  that  day  will  all  your  subjects  forget  that  they 
are  born  only  to  attend  on  you." 

"But,"  said  Cherry,  "shall  I  not  be  disgraced  if  I  put 
an  innocent  person  to  death?  for,  after  all,  Zelia  is  guilty 
of  no  crime." 

"No  one  can  be  innocent  who  refuses  to  yield  to  your 
wishes,"  replied  the  confidant:  "but  supposing  that  you 
committed  an  unjust  action,  even  that  would  be  better 
than  that  it  should  be  said  you  allowed  any  one  to  show 
you  a  want  of  respect,  or  to  contradict  you." 

The  courtier  attacked  Cherry  on  his  weak  side;  and 
the  fear  of  seeing  his  authority  diminished  made  so  much 
impression  on  the  king  that  he  repressed  his  first  impulse 
to  correct  himself.  He  resolved  to  go  that  same  evening 
to  the  room  in  which  the  shepherdess  was  confined,  and 
not  to  spare  her  if  she  still  refused  to  marry  him. 

Cherry's  foster-brother,  who  still  feared  the  force  of 
some  good  inclination,  assembled  three  young  lords  as 
wicked  as  himself,  to  carouse  with  the  king.  They  sup- 
ped together,  and  took  care  quite  to  overturn  this  poor 
prince's  reason  by  making  him  drink  very  deeply.  They 
artfully  excited  his  anger  against  Zelia,  and  made  him  so 
ashamed  of  his  weakness  toward  her  that  he  rose  from  the 
table  like  a  madman,  and  swore  that  he  would  at  once 
make  her  obey  him,  or  that  she  should  be  sold  the  next 
day  for  a  slave. 

On  entering  the  shepherdess'  room,  Cherry  was  very 
much  surprised  not  to  find  her  therein,  for  he  had  kept 
the  key  in  his  pocket.  He  went  into  a  terrible  rage,  and 
vowed  vengeance  on  all  whom  he  suspected  of  having 
assisted  her  escape.  His  confidants,  hearing  him  talk 
thus,  resolved  to  take  advantage  of  his  anger  to  sacrifice 
a  lord  who  had  been  Cherry's  guardian.  That  good  man 
had  sometimes  taken  the  liberty  of 'telling  the  king  of 
his  faults,  for  he  loved  him  as  his  son.  At  first  Cherry 
thanked  him;  he  gradually,  however,  grew  impatient  z& 


326  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

his  remonstrances;  and  at  last  thought  that  it  was  in  the 
spirit  of  opposition  only  that  his  guardian  found  fault 
with  him  when  everybody  else  praised  him.  He  ordered 
him  to  withdraw  from  the  court;  but,  notwithstanding 
that  order,  he  would  say  from  time  to  time  that  he  was 
a  good  man;  and  although  perhaps  he  no  longer  loved 
him,  he  could  not  help  esteeming  him  in  spite  of  him- 
self. The  confidants  therefore  were  continually  in  fear 
lest  he  should  take  it  into  his  head  to  recall  his  guardian, 
and  they  believed  that  they  had  now  found  a  favorable 
opportunity  to  get  rid  of  him  forever.  They  gave  the 
king  to  understand  that  Sulirnan  (which  was  his  worthy 
guardian's  name)  had  boasted  that  he  would  set  Zelia  at 
liberty;  and  three  men  were  induced  by  rich  bribes  to 
say  that  they  had  heard  Snliman  affirm  as  much.  The 
prince,  in  a  transport  of  rage,  ordered  his  foster-brother 
to  dispatch  soldiers  to  fetch  his  guardian  chained  like  a 
criminal.  After  giving  this  order,  Cherry  went  out  into 
the  grounds  of  the  palace,  and  threw  himself  on  the 
grass,  feeling  very  miserable.  Almost  directly  afterward 
he  heard  the  sound  of  a  horse's  hoofs,  and  the  Fairy 
Candid  appeared  on  a  white  steed:  "I  promised  your 
father,"  said  she  to  him,  in  a  severe  voice,  "to  give  you 
good  advice,  and  to  punish  you  if  you  refused  to  follow 
it;  you  have  treated  my  counsel  with  contempt;  you  still 
preserve  the  outward  appearance  of  a  man,  but  your 
crimes  have  changed  you  into  a  monster,  the  horror  of 
earth  and  of  heaven.  It  is  now  time  that  I  entirely  fulfill 
my  promise  to  your  father  by  punishing  you  for  your 
guilt.  I  condemn  you  to  become  like  unto  the  beasts 
whose  inclinations  you  have  adopted.  You  have  made 
yourself  like  the  lion  by  your  anger,  like  the  wolf  by 
your  gluttony,  like  the  serpent  by  outraging  him  who  was 
your  second  father,  like  the  bull  by  your  ferocity.  Bear 
then  in  your  form  the  character  of  all  these  animals." 

The  fairy  ceased  to  speak,  and  Cherry  saw  with  horror 
that  her  sentence  was  accomplished.  He  had  a  lion's 
head,  a  bull's  horns,  a  wolf's  feet  and  a  serpent's  tail. 
In  a  moment  he  found  himself  out  of  the  grove  and  in  a 
large  forest  on  the  border  of  a  rivulet,  in  which  he  saw 
reflected  his  horrible  transformation.  He  heard  a  voice 
saying: ^'Behold:  and  reflect  on  the  condition  into  which 
your  crimes  have  reduced  you.  Your  soul  is  a  thousand. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  327 

times  more  frightful  than  your  body."  Cherry  recog- 
nized the  voice  of  the  Fairy  Candid,  and  in  his  fury 
turned  round  to  spring  upon  and  devour  her,  had  it  been 
possible;  but  he  saw  no  one,  while  the  same  voice  con- 
tinued: "I  laugh  at  your  weakness  and  rage.  I  go  to 
confound  your  pride,  by  putting  you  in  the  power  of 
your  own  subjects/' 

Cherry  thought  that  by  removing  from  the  rivulet  he 
should  lessen  his  troubles,  since  he  would  no  longer  have 
his  ugliness  and  deformity  before  his  eyes;  so  he  pene- 
trated into  the  wood:  but  he  had  not  advanced  many 
steps  when  he  fell  into  a  pit  that  had  been  dug  to  entrap 
bears.  In  an  instant  the  huntsmen,  who  had  been  con- 
cealed in  the  trees,  came  down,  and  having  bound  him  in 
chains  they  conducted  him  to  the  capital  city  of  his 
kingdom.  On  the  road,  instead  of  acknowledging  that 
he  had  drawn  this  punishment  on  himself  by  his  faults, 
he  cursed  the  fairy,  gnashed  his  chains  between  his  teeth, 
and  abandoned  himself  to  his  fury.  As  he  approached 
the  capital  he  perceived  every  where  great  rejoicings;  and 
on  the  huntsmen  asking  what  had  occurred,  they  were 
informed  that  Prince  Cherry,  who  only  took  delight  in 
tormenting  his  people,  had  been  destroyed  in  his  cham- 
ber by  a  thunderbolt;  for  thus  it  was  believed.  "The 
gods,"  added  their  informants,  "could  no  longer  endure 
the  excess  of  his  wickedness,  and  have  rid  the  earth  of 
the  monster."  It  was  stated  also  that  four  lords,  his  ac- 
complices in  crime,  thought  to  profit  by  his  destruction 
and  to  share  the  empire  between  them;  but  that  the  peo- 
ple, who  knew  that  it  was  by  their  evil  advice  that  the 
king  had  fallen,  had  cut  them  in  pieces,  and  had  offered 
the  crown  to  Suliman,  the  good  man  whom  the  wicked 
Cherry  had  wished  to  put  to  death.  "That  worthy  guard- 
ian of  the  late  king  has  just  been  crowned,"  said  an  old 
man,  "and  we  celebrate  the  day  as  that  of  the  kingdom's 
deliverance;  for  he  is  virtuous,  and  will  restore  peace  and 
abundance  to  the  land."  Cherry  groaned  with  rage  at 
overhearing  this  discourse;  but  it  was  much  worse  for 
him  when  he  arrived  at  the  large  square  before  his  palace. 
He  saw  Suliman  on  a  superb  throne,  and  heard  all  the 
people  bless  him,  and  pray  for  Ing  long  life,  that  he 
might  repair  the  evils  they  had  suffered  under  his  prede- 
cessor,, when  Suliman  expressed  by  signs  that  he  wished 


328  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

to  be  heard,  and  thus  addressed  the  multitude:  "I  have 
accepted  the  crown  you  have  offered  me,"  said  he,  "but 
it  is  only  to  preserve  it  for  Prince  Cherry.  He  is  not 
dead,  as  you  believe  him  to  be.  A  fairy  has  revealed  to 
me  his  destiny,  and  perhaps  you  may  yet  see  him  some 
day  as  virtuous  as  he  was  in  the  early  years  of  his  reign. 
Alas!"  he  continued,  weeping,  "flatterers  seduced  him. 
I  knew  his  heart,  it  was  formed  for  virtue;  and,  but  for 
the  poisonous  discourse  of  those  around  him,  he  would 
have  been  the  father  of  us  all.  Detest  his  vices,  but  pity 
his  misfortunes;  and  let  us  unite  to  pray  the  gods  to  re- 
store him  to  us.  For  my  part  I  should  be  but  too  happy 
to  bathe  his  throne  with  my  blood,  could  I  but  see  him 
once  again  ascend  it  with  such  dispositions  as  would 
make  him  fill  it  more  worthily." 

Suliman's  words  touched  Cherry's  heart.  He  then  felt 
how  sincere  had  been  the  fidelity  and  attachment  of  this 
good  old  man;  and  for  the  first  time  since  his  punish- 
ment he  felt  remorse  for  his  crimes.  Softened  by  this 
good  feeling,  he  felt  the  rage  that  had  agitated  him 
gradually  cool;  he  reflected  on  the  many  crimes  of  his 
life,  and  acknowledged  that  he  was  not  punished  so  rig- 
orously as  he  deserved.  He  ceased  to  struggle  in  the 
iron  cage  in  which  he  was  confined,  and  became  as  quiet 
as  a  lamb.  He  was  conducted  to  a  large  menagerie,  in 
which  were  kept  all  sorts  of  monsters  and  wild  beasts, 
and  he  was  chained  up  among  the  rest. 

Cherry  resolved  that  he  would  lose  no  opportunity  of 
repairing  his  faults;  he  therefore  conducted  himself  very 
obediently  toward  the  man  who  had  the  care  of  him. 
This  man  was  a  ruffian,  and  although  the  monster  was 
very  gentle,  he  yet  beat  him  without  rhyme  or  reason. 
One  day,  as  his  keeper  was  lying  asleep,  a  lion,  having 
broken  his  chain,  sprang  upon  him  to  devour  him. 
Cherry  could  not  for  a  moment  prevent  a  slight  emotion 
of  joy  at  seeing  himself  about  to  be  thus  delivered  from 
his  persecutor;  but  he  immediately  repressed  this  feel- 
ing, and  anxiously  regretted  that  he  was  not  at  liberty. 
I  would  return,"  said  he,  "good  for  evil  by  saving  the 
life  of  this  unfortunate." 

No  sooner  had  he  thus  determined  than  he  saw  his 
cage-door  open;  he  sprang  to  the  assistance  of  the  man, 
who  was  awakened,  and  defending  himself  against  the. 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  329 

lion.  The  keeper  thought  he  was  lost  indeed,  when  he 
saw  the  monster,  but  his  fear  was  soon  changed  to  joy; 
the  beneficent  Cherry  sprang  upon  the  lion,  strangled  it, 
and  crouched  himself  humbly  at  the  feet  of  the  man 
whom  he  had  just  saved.  Penetrated  with  gratitude,  the 
keeper  would  have  caressed  the  monster  who  had  done 
him  so  signal  a  service;  but  as  he  stooped,  he  heard  a 
voice  saying:  "A  good  action  never  goes  unrewarded;" 
and  at  the  same  moment,  to  his  great  surprise,  he  saw 
but  a  pretty  little  dog  at  his  feet.  Cherry,  charmed  at 
his  metamorphosis,  leaped  upon  and  caressed  his  keeper, 
who  took  him  in  his  arms  and  carried  him  to  the  king, 
to  whom  he  related  the  wonderful  occurrence  that  had 
just  taken  place.  The  queen,  charmed  with  his  good- 
ness, wished  to  have  the  dog;  and  Cherry  would  have 
been  very  well  contented  with  his  new  condition,  could 
he  but  have  forgotten  that  he  was  once  a  man  and  a 
king.  The  queen  daily  overwhelmed  him  with  caresses, 
but  greatly  feared  lest  he  should  grow  larger  than  he 
then  was.  She  consulted  her  physicians,  who  told  her 
that  to  prevent  his  growth  it  was  merely  necessary  to 
feed  him  on  bread  only,  and  to  give  him  but  a  fixed 
allowance  of  that.  Poor  Cherry  was  thus  in  danger  of 
dying  with  hunger,  but  he  felt  that  it  was  necessary  for 
him  to  be  patient. 

One  day,  directly  after  his  bread  had  been  given  to 
him  for  his  breakfast,  he  took  it  into  his  head  that  he 
would  go  and  eat  it  in  the  palace  garden.  He  took  it  in 
his  mouth  therefore,  and  went  straight  toward  a  stream 
which  he  recollected  as  being  at  a  short  distance  from 
the  palace.  But  to  his  surprise  the  stream  was  no  longer 
there,  and  in  its  place  he  saw  a  large  house,  the  outside 
of  which  was  brilliant  with  gold  and  precious  stones. 

He  observed  an  immense  quantity  of  men  and  women, 
magnificently  dressed,  all  going  into  this  house;  and 
from  the  interior  he  heard  singing,  dancing,  and  other 
indications  of  the  good  cheer  that  was  to  be  found  there; 
but  he  observed  that  all  those  who  quitted  the  house 
were  pale,  thin,  covered  with  sores,  and  nearly  naked,  for 
their  clothes  were  torn  to  tatters.  Some  fell  dead  as 
they  crossed  the  threshold,  apparently  entirely  exhausted; 
others  remained  stretched  on  the  ground  at  a  short  dis- 
tance from  the  door,  dying  with  hunger;  and  a  few  only 


330  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

had  sufficient  strength  to  drag  themselves  away.  The 
poor  creatures  who  were  lying  on  the  ground  begged 
with  tears  for  a  morsel  of  bread  from  those  who  were  go- 
ing into  the  house,  but  were  passed  by  without  even  a 
look.  Cherry  observed  a  young  girl  who  was  trying  to 
gather  some  grass  to  eat,  and,  touched  with  compassion, 
said  to  himself:  "I  have  a  good  appetite,  'tis  true,  but  I 
shall  not  die  of  hunger  before  my  dinner-time,  and  if  I 
sacrifice  my  breakfast  to  this  poor  creature,  perhaps  I 
may  be  the  means  of  saving  her  life."  He  resolved  to 
obey  this  good  impulse,  and  put  his  bread  into  the  young 

§irl's  hand,  who  carried  it  with  avidity  to  her  mouth, 
he  soon  appeared  to  be  entirely  restored,  and  Cherry, 
transported  with  joy  at  having  succored  her  so  oppor- 
tunely, was  thinking  of  returning  to  the  palace,  when  he 
heard  loud  cries;  it  was  Zelia  in  the  hands  of  four  men, 
who  were  dragging  her  toward  the  fine  house,  and  were 
about  to  force  her  therein. 

Cherry  then  regretted  that  he  had  lost  the  shape  and 
powers  of  the  monster,  which  would  have  enabled  him  to 
rescue  his  Zelia;  while  as  a  weak  dog,  he  could  only  bark 
at  her  enemies  and  follow  close  at  their  heels.  He  was 
driven  away  with  kicks  and  curses,  but  he  resolved  not  to 
leave  the  place,  and  to  ascertain  what  became  of  Zelia. 
He  upbraided  himself  with  that  beautiful  girl's  misfor- 
tunes. "Alas!"  said  he  to  himself,  "I  am  irritated' 
against  those  who  are  now  carrying  her  off,  but  have  I 
not  committed  against  her  the  same  crime?  And  if  the 
justice  of  Heaven  had  not  frustrated  my  intentions, 
should  I  not  have  treated  her  with  as  much  indignity?" 

Cherry's  reflections  were  interrupted  by  a  noise  which 
he  heard  over  his  head.  He  saw  a  window  opened,  and 
his  joy  was  extreme  at  perceiving  Zelia,  who  threw  out  of 
the  window  a  plateful  of  victuals  so  nicely  cooked  that 
the  very  sight  of  them  was  enough  to  create  an  appetite. 
The  window  was  immediately  closed  again,  and  Cherry, 
who  had  not  eaten  all  day,  thought  that  he  might  as  well 
take  advantage  of  this  opportunity.  He  was  just  about 
to  eat,  when  the  young  girl,  to  whom  he  had  given  his 
bread,  uttered  a  cry,  and,  taking  him  in  her  arms: 
"Poor  little  animal,"  said  she,  "touch  not  those  tempt- 
ing viands;  that  house  is  the  palace  of  luxury,  and  all 
that  comes  from  it  is  poisoned." 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  331 

At  the  same  time  Cherry  heard  a  voice  saying:  "You 
see  again  that  a  good  action  does  not  go  unrewarded/' 
and  he  was  immediately  changed  into  a  pretty  little  white 
pigeon.  He  remembered  that  this  was  the  color  of  the 
Fairy  Candid,  and  he  began  to  hope  that  she  might  yet 
restore  him  to  her  good  graces.  His  first  wish  was  to  go 
to  Zelia,  and,  rising  in  the  air,  he  flew  all  round  the 
house.  He  saw  with  joy  that  there  was  a  window  open; 
but  in  vain  did  he  fly  all  over  the  house:' he  could  not 
find  his  Zelia  there.  He  resolved,  however,  not  to  rest 
until  he  should  meet  with  her.  He  flew  onward  for 
many  days,  and  having  at  last  entered  on  a  desert,  he 
perceived  a  cavern,  into  which  he  entered.  Conceive 
his  joy!  Zelia  was  seated  therein  by  the  side  of  a  vener- 
able hermit,  and  was  sharing  with  him  his  frugal  meal. 
Cherry,  transported,  flew  on  to  the  shoulder  of  the  shep- 
herdess, and  expressed  by  his  caresses  the  pleasure  he 
felt  at  seeing  her  again.  Zelia,  who  was  charmed  with 
the  little  bird's  gentleness,  softly  stroked  him  with  her 
hand,  and  although  she  thought  he  could  not  under- 
stand her,  she  told  him  that  she  accepted  the  gift  that  he 
made  her  of  himself,  and  that  she  would  always  love  him. 
"What  have  you  done,  Zelia?"  said  the  hermit;  "you 
have  just  pledged  your  faith." 

"Yes,  charming  shepherdess,"  said  Cherry  to  her,  re- 
suming at  that  moment  his  natural  form;  "the  end  of 
my  metamorphosis  depended  then  on  your  consent  to  our 
union.  You  have  promised  to  love  me  always;  confirm 
my  happiness  or  I  will  conjure  the  Fairy  Candid,  my 
protectress,  to  restore  to  me  that  form  under  which  I  had 
the  happiness  to  please  you." 

"You  need  not  fear  her  inconstancy,"  said  Candid, 
who,  quitting  the  figure  of  the  hermit,  under  which  she 
had  been  concealed,  appeared  in  her  proper  person. 
"Zelia  loved  you  when  first  she  saw  you,  but  your  vices 
obliged  her  to  conceal  from  you  the  passion  with  which 
you  had  inspired  her.  The  change  that  has  taken  place 
in  your  heart  allows  her  to  give  way  to  her  tenderness. 
You  will  live  happily  together,  since  your  union  will  be 
founded  on  virtue."' 

Cherry  and  Zelia  threw  themselves  at  the  Fairy  Can- 
did's  feet.  The  prince  could  not  sufficiently  thank  her 
for  her  goodness,  and  Zelia,  enchanted  to  learn  that  the 


332  OLDt  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

prince  had  abandoned  his  errors,  confirmed  to  him  the 
pleasing  confession  of  her  love.  "Rise,  my  children,'' 
said  the  fairy  to  them;  "I  will  transport  you  to  your 
palace:  I  will  restore  to  Cherry  a  crown  of  which  his 
vices  had  rendered  him  unworthy."  She  ceased,  and 
Cherry  found  himself  with  Zelia  in  the  chamber  of  Suli- 
man,  who,  charmed  to  see  his  master  return,  restored  to 
himself  and  to  virtue,  joyfully  abdicated  the  throne,  and 
became  again  the  most  loyal  of  his  subjects.  Cherry  and 
Zelia  enjoyed  a  long  and  happy  reign,  and  it  is  said  of  the 
prince  that  he  thenceforward  applied  himself  so  zeal- 
ously to  his  duty  that  the  ring  which  he  had  recovered 
with  his  form  never  pricked  him  again  so  as  to  draw 
blood. 


THE  PEINCESS  MAIA. 

ONCE  upon  a  time  there  lived  a  king  and  queen  who 
had  had  several  children,  but  who  had  lost  -them  all, 
which  gave  them  much  sorrow,  for  they  had  more  estates 
than  were  necessary  for  themselves,  and  only  wanted 
children.  It  was  five  years  since  the  queen  had  had  her 
last,  and  everybody  thought  that  she  would  have  no 
more,  and  she  was  greatly  afflicted  thinking  of  her  pretty 
little  princes  who  were  dead. 

But  at  last  the  queen  was  consoled  by  having  another 
little  baby.  It  was  proclaimed  with  the  sound  of 
trumpets  and  with  large  placards  in  all  the  public 
places,  that  the  best  nurses  were  to  present  themselves 
before  the  queen,  that  from  among  them  she  might 
choose  one  for  her  baby.  They  soon  began  to  pour  in 
from  all  the  four  quarters  of  the  world;  no  one  was  to  be 
seen  but  nurses  and  their  babes.  One  day  the  queen 
took  an  airing  in  a  large  wood,  and.  seating  herself  near 
the  king,  said:  "Sire,  let  us  assemble  all  the  nurses  and 
select  one  for  our  baby." 

"W^h  all  my  heart,  my  dear,"  said  the  king,  and  im- 
mediately gave  order  for  them  all  to  be  summoned. 
The  nurses  all  came,  one  after  another,  made  a  nice 
courtesy  to  the  king  and  queen,  and  placed  themsslves  in 
a  row  each  against  a  tree.  After  they  had  thus  arranged 
themselves,  and  their  healthy  looks  and  fine  teeth 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  333 

had  been  admired,  an  ugly  young  woman,  sitting  cross- 
legged  with  her  knees  as  high  as  her  chin  in  a  kind  of 
barrow  drawn  by  two  dirty  little  dwarfs,  made  her  ap- 
pearance; she  had  a  large  hump  on  her  back,  squinted 
shockingly  with  both  eyes,  and  her  skin  was  somewhat 
blacker  than  ink.  She  held  in  her  arms  a  little  monkey, 
and  she  spoke  a  jargon  that  no  one  understood.  She 
came  in  her  turn  to  offer  herself,  but  the  queen  repulsed 
her:  "Go,  ugly  creature,"  said  she  to  her;'  "you  are  very 
ignorant  to  come  before  me  as  you  are;  if  yon  remain 
there  any  longer  I  will  take  good  care  to  have  you  re- 
moved." The  ill-looking  creature  passed  on,  grumbling 
very  audibly,  drawn  by  her  frightful  little  dwarfs;  she 
settled  herself  in  the  hollow  of  a  large  tree,  whence  she 
could  see  all  that  passed. 

The  queen,  thinking  no  more  about  her,  chose  a  nice- 
looking  nurse;  but  directly  she  had  named  her,  behold, 
a  horrible  serpent,  which  was  hidden  in  the  grass,  stung 
her  in  the  heel,  and  she  fell  down  like  one  dead.  The 
queen,  very  sorry  for  this  accident,  chose  another:  im- 
mediately an  eagle  flying  in  the  air  came  in  sight,  carry- 
ing a  tortoise;  he  flew  directly  over  the  poor  nurse,  let- 
ting the  tortoise  fall  on  her  head,  which  crushed  her  to 
atoms  like  a  glass.  The  queen,  still  more  grieved, 
named  a  third,  who,  coming  forward  a  little  quickly, 
stumbled  over  a  bush  full  of  long  thorns  and  knocked 
one  of  her  eyes  out. 

"Ah!"  cried  the  queen,  "my  affairs  are  attended  with 
much  misfortune  to-day;  I  cannot  choose  a  nurse  with- 
out bringing  ill-luck  upon  her!  I  will  leave  the  care  of 
it  to  my  physician." 

As  she  was  rising  to  return  to  the  palace  she  heard  a 
very  hearty  laugh:  she  looked  round  and  saw  behind  her 
the  vile  humpback,  who  was  seated  in  her  barrow  like  a 
monkey,  with  her  cub  in  her  arms.  She  mocked  all  the 
company,  and  at  the  queen  in  particular,  who,  as  you 
may  suppose,  was  so  vexed  at  this  that  she  felt  inclined 
to  run  up  to  her  and  beat  her,  not  doubting  that  she  had 
been  the  cause  of  all  the  mishaps  which  had  befallen  the 
nurses;  but  the  humpback,  having  made  three  strokes 
with  her  wand,  the  dwarfs  were  transformed  into  winged 
griffins,  the  barrow  into  a  chariot  of  fire,  and  away  they 
all  flew  in  the  air  uttering  menaces  and  loud  cries. 


334  OLD.  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

"Alas!  my  dear,  we  are  lost!"  said  the  king;  "that  is 
the  Fairy  Carabosse;  the  malicious  creature  has  hated  me 
ever  since  I  was  a  little  boy,  because  I  once  in  a  frolic 
put  some  sulphur  in  her  broth,  and  ever  since  that  time 
she  has  been  seeking  an  opportunity  to  revenge  herself." 

The  queen  began  to  weep.  "If  I  had  known  her  name 
beforehand,"  said  she,  "I  would  have  tried  to  make  a 
friend  of  her:  I  wish  I  were  dead." 

When  the  king  saw  the  queen  so  afflicted,  he  said: 
"My  love,  let  us  consult  on  what  we  had  better  do/'  He 
then  raised  her  and  supported  her  in  his  arms  to  the 
palace,  for  she  still  trembled  from  the  effect  of  the  fear 
which  Carabosse  had  caused  her.  When  the  king  and 
queen  were  in  their  room,  they  assembled  their  council; 
the  doors  and  windows  were  carefully  shut,  that  the 
result  of  their  deliberations  might  not  be  overheard,  and 
it  was  resolved  to  invite  all  the  fairies  who  lived  within 
three  thousand  miles,  to  the  palace.  Couriers  were  dis- 
patched immediately,  bearing  letters  very  civilly  con- 
ceived and  fairly  written,  requesting  them  to  come  and 
see  the  baby,  but  asking  them  to  keep  the  affair  secret, 
for  it  was  feared  that  it  might  reach  Carabosse's  ears, 
and  that  she  might  come  and  create  a  disturbance.  As 
a  recompense  for  their  trouble,  they  were  promised  a  blue 
velvet  kirtle,  an  under  petticoat  of  purple  velvet,  slippers 
of  slashed  crimson  satin,  a  small  pair  of  gilded  scissors, 
and  a  case  full  of  fine  needles. 

When  the  couriers  had  departed  the  queen  began  to 
work  with  her  maids-of-honor  and  her  attendants,  to 
make  all  that  had  been  promised  for  the  fairies;  she 
knew  several,  but  only  five  or  six  of  them  came.  As  soon 
as  they  arrived  they  hastened  to  shut  themselves  up  in  a 
.jOroom  to  endow  the  little  princess.  The  first  gave  her 
perfect  beauty;  the  second,  infinite  wit;  the  third  en- 
dowed her  with  the  gift  of  singing  to  perfection;  the 
fourth,  with  a  talent  for  writing,  both  in  prose  and  verse. 

As  the  fifth  was  about  to  speak  a  rumbling  noise  was 
heard  in  the  chimney,  similar  in  sound  to  that  which  a 
stone  would  make  in  falling  down  a  steeple,  and  Carabosse 
appeared,  covered  from  head  to  foot  with  soot,  crying  in 
aloud  voice:  "And  I  endow  this  little  creature,  ' 

"  '  To  be  more  unlucky  than  any  alive, 
Until  she  is  aged  full  four  times  five/  ** 


OLD,  OLD  FAfitY  TALES.  335 

At  these  words  the  queen,  who  was  in  bed,  began  to 
cry  and  to  entreat  Carabosse  to  have  pity  on  the  littlo 
princess. 

All  the  fairies  entreated  her:  "Alas!  sister,"  said  they, 
"recall  so  bad  a  gift;  what  harm  can  she  have  done  you?" 
But  the  ugly  fairy  would  not  answer  a  word  so  that  the 
fifth,  who  had  not  yet  spoken,  tried  to  mend  the  matter, 
by  endowing  her  with  a  long  and  happy  life  when  the 
time  of  the  malediction  should  have  expired.  Carabosse 
only  laughed  at  her,  and  sang  taunting  songs  all  the 
time  she  was  reascending  the  chimney,  by  which  she  took 
her  departure.  The  fairies  all  remained  in  consterna- 
tion, and  the  poor  queen  was  more  particularly  astounded. 
She  did  not  fail  to  give  them  what  she  had  promised, 
augmenting  the  gifts  by  ribbons,  with  which  they  were 
very  pleased.  They  were  also  well  feasted;  and  the  eld- 
est of  them  said  that  it  was  her  advice  that  the  young 
princess,  until  she  should  be  twenty  years  old,  should  be 
confined  in  some  place  where  she  would  see  no  one  but 
the  women  who  attended  on  her,  and  that  she  should  be 
closely  guarded. 

Thereupon  the  king  caused  a  close  tower  to  be  built, 
in  which  there  was  no  window;  there  was  no  light  in  it, 
except  that  shed  by  wax  tapers.  It  was  reached  by  a  sub- 
terraneous passage  which  extended  three  miles  under- 
ground, and  by  that  passage  the  governesses  and  nurses 
had  what  they  required  brought  to  them.  At  every 
twenty  steps  was  a  large  door  very  securely  fastened,  and 
guards  were  stationed  the  whole  length  of  it. 

The  young  princess  was  called  Maia,  because  in  her  com- 
plexion were  combined  the  hues  of  the  rose  and  the  lily; 
and  she  was  more  blooming  and  more  lovely  than  the 
spring  in  that  delightful  month  whose  name  she  bore. 
She  was  admirable  in  whatever  she  said  or  whatever  she 
did;  she  mastered  the  most  abstruse  sciences  as  well  as 
the  most  gracefuj  accomplishments,  and  she  grew  so  tall 
and  beautiful  that  the  king  and  queen  never  saw  her 
without  weeping  for  joy.  She  sometimes  requested 
them  to  stay  with  her,  or  take  her  away  with  them,  for 
she  was  melancholy  without  knowing  the  cause;  but  they 
always  deferred  yielding  to  her  request. 

Her  nurse,  who  had  never  quitted  her,  and  did  not 
want  talent,-  sometimes  told  her  how  the  world  looked 


336  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

outside  her  tower;  and  she  understood  her  as  well  as 
though  she  had  made  the  grand  tour.  The  king  often 
said  to  the  queen:  "My  dear,  Carabosse  will  be  de- 
ceived; we  are  more  cunning  than  she  is;  our  Maia  will 
be  happy  in  spite  of  her  prediction."  And  the  queen 
would  laugh  till  tears  came  into  her  eyes,  at  the  thought 
of  the  wicked  fairy's  defeated  malice.  They  had  Maia's 

Portrait  taken,  and  sent  copies  of  it  all  over  the  world; 
}r  the  twenty  years  were  now  near  their  expiration,  and 
they  wished  to  marry  her.  Four  days  only  were  want- 
ing to  complete  the  period;  the  court  and  the  city  made 
great  rejoicings  in  honor  of  the  approaching  liberation 
of  the  princess,  and  they  were  augmented  by  the  news 
that  King  Merlin  wished  to  contract  her  to  his  son,  and 
had  dispatched  his  ambassador  Fanfarinet  to  ask  for  her 
hand. 

The  nurse  who  informed  the  princess  of  everything  that 
occurred  told  her  this,  adding  that  no  sight  could  be  so 
beautiful  as  Fanfarinet's  entry. 

"Ah!  how  unfortunate  I  am,"  cried  she,  "to  be  de- 
tained in  a  gloomy  tower,  as  though  I  had  been  guilty  of 
some  great  crime!  I  have  never  seen  the  sky,  the  sun,  or 
the  stars,  of  which  such  wonders  are  related;  I  have 
never  seen  a  horse,  a  monkey,  or  a  lion,  excepting  in  a 
picture.  The  king  and  queen  say  that  they  will  liberate 
me  when  I  shall  be  twenty  years  old;  but  they  wish  to 
amuse  me,  to  make  me  patient,  and  I  know  very  well 
that  they  intend  to  allow  me  to  die  here,  although  I  have 
not  offended  them  in  any  way."  Thereupon  she  began 
to  cry  so  vehemently  that  her  eyes  swelled  as  large  as 
walnuts,  and  her  nurse  and  foster-sister,  with  her  two 
other  attendants,  who  were  all  passionately  fond  of  her, 
began  to  cry  also,  so  abundantly  that  nothing  but  sobs 
and  sighs  could  be  heard;  so  bitter  was  their  grief  that 
it  nearly  stifled  them. 

When  the  princess  saw  them  so  opportunely  afflicted 
she  took  a  knife  and  said  aloud:  "I  am  resolved  to  kill 
myself  immediately,  if  you  do  not  find  a  means  of  letting 
me  see  Fanfarinet's  splendid  entry;  the  good  king  and 
queen  will  never  know  anything  about  it;  consider 
whether  you  would  rather  that  I  should  kill  myself  now 
directly,  or  whether  you  will  indulge  me  in  this  wish." 
At  these  words  all  the  women  began  to  cry  again  still 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  337 

more  bitterly;  and  they  at  last  determined  to  indulge  her 
in  a  sight  of  Fanarinet,  or  die  in  the  attempt.  They 
passed  the  remainder  of  the  evening  in  proposing  and  re- 
jecting expedients;  and  Maia,  who  was  in  despair,  said 
accordingly:  "Do  not  attempt  to  make  me  believe  that 
you  love  me;  if  you  loved  me,  you  would  soon  find  the 
means.  I  have  read  that  where  there  is  a  will  there  is  a 
way." 

At  last  they  concluded  that  they  would  make  a  hole  in 
the  wall  of  the  tower  nearest  the  city,, by  which  wall 
Fanfarinet  was  expected  to  pass.  They  removed  the 
princess'  bed,  and  they  all  immediately  set  to  work,  not 
leaving  off  day  or  night.  By  dint  of  scraping  and  scrap- 
ing they  made  a  hole  through  the  plaster,  and  then  took 
out  two  or  three  stones.  Presently  they  had  displaced 
so  many  that  they  had  made  a  hole  large  enough  to  pass 
a  small  needle  through  with  much  difficulty. 

Through  that  hole  Maia  perceived  daylight  for  the  first 
time:  it  dazzled  her  eyes;  and  as  she  looked  continually 
through  it,  she  at  last  saw  Fanfarinet  appear  at  the  head 
of  his  company.  He  was  mounted  on  a  white  horse 
which  was  curveting  to  the  sound  of  trumpets,  and 
leaping  admirably;  six  flute-players  went  in  front,  play- 
ing the  prettiest  airs  of  the  last  new  opera;  and  six  haut- 
boys re-echoed  in  answer  to  the  flutes;  then  the  trumpets 
and  kettledrums  made  a  loud  noise.  Fanfarinet  wore  a 
rich  suit  covered  with  embroidery  and  pearls,  with 
golden  boots,  scarlet  feathers,  aburid^ce  of  ribbons,  and 
so  many  diamonds,  for  King  Merlin  had  whole  rooms 
full  of  them,  as  made  him  so  dazzling  that  the  sun  itself 
was  less  brilliant.  At  this  sight  Maia  was  sD  beside  her- 
self with  joy  that  she  could  look  no  longer;  and  after 
reflecting  a  few  minutes,  she  vowed  that  she  would 
marry  no  one  but  the  handsome  Fanfarinet;  that  there 
did  not  seem  to  be  any  chance  of  his  master  being  half  so 
amiable;  that  she  was  not  ambitious;  that  if  she  had  re- 
sided so  comfortably  in  a  tower,  she  could  live  just  as 
comfortably,  if  it  were  necessary,  in  a  castle  in  the  coun- 
try with  Fanfarinet;  that,  to  her  mind,  bread  and  water 
with  him  were  preferable  to  the  richest  delicacies  with 
any  one  else.  In  a  word,  she  said  so  much  about  him 
that  her  women  were  puzzled  to. think  where  she  had 
learned  a  quarter  of  it;  and  when  they  were  going  to 


33$  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

explain  his  rank  and  the  wrong  she  was  about  to  do  her- 
self, she  made  them  hold  their  tongues  and  would  not 
deign  to  listen  to  them. 

When  Fanfarinet  had  arrived  at  the  king's  palace,  the 
queen  sent  to  fetch  her  daughter.  All  the  streets  were 
carpeted,  and  ladies  were  at  the  windows;  some  held 
baskets  full  of  flowers,  others  baskets  full  of  pearls,  and, 
what  was  better,  excellent  sweetmeats,  to  scatter  over 
her  as  she  passed. 

They  had  begun  to  dress  her,  when  a  dwarf  mounted 
on  an  elephant  arrived  at  the  tower;  he  came  from  the 
five  good  fairies  who  had  endowed  her  the  day  she  was 
born.  They  sent  her  a  crown,  a  scepter,  a  golden  bro- 
cade robe,  a  petticoat  made  of  butterflies'  wings  of  ad- 
mirable workmanship,  and  a  little  strong  box,  still  more 
admirable,  for  it  was  full  of  precious  stones.  It  was 
said  that  this  box  was  beyond  price,  and  that  wealth  so 
immense  was.  never  before  seen  together.  At  this  sight 
the  queen  nearly  fainted  away  with  joy;  with  regard  to 
the  princess,  she  was  indifferent  enough  to  it  all,  think- 
ing only  of  Fanfarinet. 

They  thanked  the  dwarf;  he  had  a  pistole  given  to 
him  to  get  something  to  drink,  and  more  than  a  thou- 
sand yards  of  narrow  ribbon  of  various  colors,  with  which 
he  made  himself  fine  gaiters,  a  tie  to  his  cravat,  and  a 
bow  to  his  hat.  The  dwarf  was  so  little  that,  when  he 
had  all  those  ribbons  on,  his  body  was  no  longer  visible. 
The  queen  told  him  that  she  was  considering  what  nice 
present  she  should  send  the  fairies;  and  the  princess, 
who  was  very  generous,  made  them  presents  of  several 
German  spinning-wheels,  with  cedarwood  distaffs. 

The  princess  was  attired  in  all  the  rarest  presents  that 
the  dwarf  had  brought;  she  appeared  so  exceedingly 
beautiful  to  everybody  who  saw  her  that  the  sun  seemed 
to  hide  himself  in  dudgeon,  and  the  moon,  who  is  not 
too  bashful,  dared  not  show  herself  while  Maia  was  on 
the  road.  She  traversed  the  streets  on  foot,  walking  on 
the  rich  carpets;  the  people  assembled  round  her  in 
crowds,  crying:  "Ah!  how  beautiful,  how  beautiful  she 
is!" 

As  she  was  going  along  dressed  in  this  pompons  ap- 
parel, surrounded  by  the  queen  and  four  or  five  dozen 
princesses  of  the  blood  royal,  without  reckoning  more 


MAIA  AND  FANFARINET. 
(339) 


340  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

than  ten  dozen  who  had  arrived  from  the  neighboring 
states  to  assist  at  the  ceremony,  the  heavens  began  to 
darken,  the  thunder  began  to  roar,  and  rain  mixed  with 
hail  fell  in  torrents.  The  queen  put  her  royal  mantle 
over  her  head,  and  every  lady  did  the  same  with  her  pet- 
ticoat. Maia  was  about  to  do  so  likewise,  when  in  the 
air  were  heard  more  than  a  thousand  rooks,  screech-owls, 
and  ravens,  with  other  birds  of  ill-omen,  who  by  their 
foreboding  noises  augured  no  good.  At  the  same  mo- 
ment a  dirty  owl,  of  a  prodigious  size,  came  hovering 
low  in  the  air,  bearing  in  his  beak  a  spider-web  scarf, 
embroidered  with  bats'  wings;  he  dropped  this  scarf  on 
Maia's  shoulder,  and  at  that  instant  loud  peals  of  .laugh- 
ter were  heard,  significant  enough  that  what  had  just 
taken  place  was  one  of  Carabosse's  tricks. 

At  this  melancholy  spectacle  everybody  began  to  weep, 
and  the  queen,  more  afflicted  than  any  one  else,  tried  to 
snatch  away  the  black  scarf;  but  it  seemed  nailed  to  her 
daughter's  shoulders:  "Ah!"  said  she,  "this  is  a  ma- 
neuver of  our  enemy;  nothing  will  conciliate  her.  I 
have  fruitlessly  sent  her  more  than  fifty  pounds  of  sweet- 
meats, as  much  sugar-candy,  and  two  Mayence  hams;  but 
she  has  taken  no  notice  of  my  presents."  While  she  was 
lamenting,  the  company  were  getting  wet  through.  Maia, 
giddy  with  the  thoughts  of  the  ambassador,  went  on,  and 
without  saying  a  single  word  she  felt  that  provided  she 
could  please  him  she  cared  for  neither  Carabosse  nor  the 
ominous  scarf;  she  was  beginning  to  feel  surprised  within 
herself  that  he  did  not  come  to  meet  her,  when  all  at 
once  he  appeared  by  the  king's  side.  The  trumpets, 
drums,  and  violins  immediately  struck  up  a  lively  air, 
and  the  shouts  of  the  populace  redoubled;  in  a  word,  the 
joy  seemed  universal. 

Fanfarinet  had  much  wit;  but  when  he  saw  the  beau- 
tiful Maia,  with  so  much  grace  and  dignity,  ho  was  so 
enraptured  that,  instead^of  speaking,  he  could  only  stam- 
mer; he  looked  like  one  tipsy,  although  he  had  only 
taken  a  cup  of  chocolate.  He  was  in  despair  at  forget- 
ting in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye  an  harangue  which  he 
had  repeated  daily  for  many  months  past,  and  which  he 
knew  well  enough  to  say  offhand  when  he  was  asleep. 

While  he  was  racking  his  memory  to  recall  his  intended 
oration,  he  continued  bowing  low  to  the  princess,  who, 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  341 

on  her  part,  courtesied  half  a  dozen  times  without  reflec- 
tion. After  awhile  she  spoke,  and  to  divest  him  of  the 
embarrassment  she  saw  that  he  was  in,  she  said:  "My 
Lord  Fanfarinet,  I  can  read  in  your  eyes  that  your 
thoughts  are  agreeable;  I  give  you  credit  for  having  so 
much  wit;  but  let  us  hasten  to  reach  the  palace;  it  is 
pouring  with  rain,  and  it  is  the  wicked  Carabosse  who  is 
thus  inundating  us;  when  we  are  under  cover  she  will  be 
duped." 

He  replied  gallantly  that  the  fairy  had  wisely  foreseen 
the  fire  that  her  beautiful  eyes  were  so  certain  to  kindle, 
and  to  assuage  it  had  kindly  sent  deluges  of  water. 

After  saying  these  few  words,  he  presented  his  hand  to 
walk  by  her  side.  She  said  in  a  low  voice:  "I  feel  for 
you  sentiments  that  you  would  never  divine,  were  I  not 
to  explain  them  to  you;  it  is  not  without  pain  that  I  do 
it;  but  'evil  be  to  him  that  evil  thinks.'  Know,  then, 
Sir  Ambassador,  that  I  saw  you  with  admiration  mounted 
on  your  fine  prancing  horse,  and  regretted  that  you  had 
come  hither  on  the  part  of  another  instead  of  your  own: 
we  will  not  fail,  however,  if  you  have  as  much  courage  as 
I  have,  to  find  a  remedy  for  this;  instead  of  marrying 
you  in  your  master's  name,  I  will  marry  you  in  your  own. 
I  know  that  you  are  not  a  prince,  but  you  deserve  to  be 
one,  and  you  please  me  as  much  as  though  you  were;  we 
will  hasten  together  to  some  retired  spot  in  the  world. 
It  will  be  talked  about  at  first,  and  then  some  one  else 
will  do  the  same  as  I  shall  have  done,  or  perhaps  worse; 
and  I  shall  be  left  in  peace,  while  they  talk  of  the  others, 
and  shall  enjoy  the  pleasure  of  living  with  you." 

Eanfarinet  thought  that  he  was  dreaming,  for  Maia 
was  so  beautiful  a  princess  that,  excepting  by  a  strange 
caprice  on  her  part,  he  could  never  have  hoped  for  this 
honor;  he  had  not  even  the  strength  to  reply.  Had  they 
been  alone  he  would  have  thrown  himself  at  her  feet; 
as  it  was,  he  took  the  liberty  of  pressing  her  hand  so 
warmly  that  he  hurt  her  little  finger,  though  she  did  not 
cry  out,  so  much  did  she  dote  upon  him.  When  she  had 
entered  the  palace  a  chorus  of  all  kinds  of  musical  in- 
struments struck  up,  which  was  seconded  by  almost 
celestial  voices,  so  charming  that,  one  hardly  dared  to 
draw  one's  breath  for  fear  of  making  too  much  noise. 

After  the  king  had  kissed  his  daughter  on  her  fore- 


342  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

head  and  cheeks,  he  said  to  her:  "My  dear  little  lamb," 
for  he  called  her  all  sorts  of  fond  names,  ' 'should  you 
not  very  much  like  to  marry  great  King  Merlin's  son? 
here  is  Lord  Fanfarinet,  who  will  be  proxy  for  his  mas- 
ter in  the  ceremony,  and  then  will  conduct  you  to  the 
fairest  kingdom  in  the  world?" 

"Yes,  indeed,  father/7  said  she,  making  a  low  cour- 
tesy; "I  am  willing  to  do  whatever  you  like,  provided 
that  my  dear  mother  consents  to  it  also." 

"I  consent,  my  darling/7  said  the  queen,  embracing 
her.  "Come,  let  dinner  be  served." 

It  was  done  with  all  due  diligence.  There  were  a 
hundred  tables  spread  in  a  long  gallery,  and  never  till 
then  had  such  a  feast  been  made  in  the  memory  of  man, 
though  Maia  and  Fanfarinet  thought  of  nothing  but  each 
other,  and  were  in  such  deep  reveries  that  they  quite  for- 
got to  eat.  When  dinner  was  over,  there  was  a  ball,  a 
ballet,  and  a  play;  but  it  was  already  so  late,  and  the 
company  had  eaten  so  heartily  at  dinner,  that  in  spite 
of  their  efforts  they  all  went  to  sleep  standing;  the  king 
and  queen,  overpowered  with  slumber,  threw  themselves 
on  a  settee;  most  of  the  ladies  and  gentlemen  snored, 
the  musicians  ceased  to  keep  time,  and  the  performers 
knew  not  what  they  said,  our  lovers  alone  being  awake, 
speaking  with  their  eyes  a  thousand  unutterable  things. 
The  princess,  seeing  that  she  had  nothing  to  fear,  and 
that  the  guards  were  all  asleep  on  the  straw-beds  in  the 
tower,  said  to  Fanfarinet:  "Trust  to  me;  let  us  take 
advantage  of  so  favorable  an  opportunity;  for  I  expect 
that  after  the  nuptial  ceremony  the  king  will  give  me 
ladies  to  wait  on  me,  and  a  prince  to  accompany  me  to 
your  King  Merlin;  we  had  better  therefore  hasten  away 
as  quickly  as  we  can." 

Maia  rose  and  took  the  king's  poniard,  which  was  set 
with  diamonds,  and  the  queen's  diadem,  which  she  had 
taken  off  her  head  to  sleep  more  at  ease.  She  gave  Fan- 
farinet her  white  hand  to  lead  her  out;  he  took  it,  and 
kneeling  on  one  knee:  "I  swear,"  said  he,  "an  eternal 
fidelity  and  obedience  to  your  highness.  Noble  princess, 
you  are  doing  everything  for  me;  vhat  would  I  not  do 
for  you?'  They  quitted  the  palace;  the  ambassador  car- 
ried a  dark  lantern,  and  after  threading  several  dirty 
streets  they  reached  the  shore,  and  entered  a  little  boat, 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  343 

in  which  a  poor  old  waterman  lay  asleep.  They  awakened 
him,  and  when  he  saw  Maia  looking  so  beautiful  and 
wearing  so  many  diamonds  and  the  spider-web  scarf,  he 
thought  she  must  be  the  goddess  of  night,  and  kneeled 
before  her;  but  she  had  no  time  to  amuse  herself,  and 
ordered  him  to  push  off  at  once.  This  was  running  a 
great  risk,  for  neither  the  moon  nor  stars  were  visible; 
the  weather  was  still  gloomy  after  the  rain  that  Cara- 
bosse  had  sent.  It  is  true  that  there  was  a  carbuncle  on 
the  queen's  Headdress,  which  was  brighter  than  fifty 
lighted  torches,  so  that  Fanfarinet,  it  is  said,  could  very 
well  have  done  without  the  dark  lantern:  they  had  also 
with  them  a  stone  which  could  make  them  invisible. 

Fanfarinet  asked  the  princess  where  she  wished  to  go. 
"Alas!"  said  she,  "I  wish  to  go  with  you;  that  is  all 
that  I  have  in  my  mind." 

"But,  madam,"  said  he,  "I  dare  not  conduct  you  to 
King  Merlin's  kingdom,  for  we  should  there  be  infallibly 
discovered." 

"Well,  then,"  replied  she,  "let  us  go  to  the  Isle  of 
Squirrels;  it  is  far  enough  off  for  us  to  be  safe  from  pur- 
suit." She  directed  the  mariner  to  put  out  to  sea,  and 
although  it  was  a  small  boat,  he  obeyed. 

When  it  was  nearly  daylight,  the  king,  the  queen,  and 
all  the  company,  having  shaken  themselves  a  little  and 
rubbed  their  eyes,  began  to  think  about  concluding  the 
princess'  marriage.  The  queen  quickly  asked  for  her 
rich  diadem  to  dress  her  head;  but  it  was,  of  course, 
vainly  sought  after  on  all  sides. 

The  king,  on  his  part,  wished  to  buckle  on  his  bril- 
liant poniard;  a  search  for  it  was  immediately  commenced 
all  round,  and  a  number  of  coffers  and  strong  boxes  were 
opened,  of  which  the  keys  had  been  lost  more  than  a 
hundred  years;  in  some  of  them  lots  of  wonderful  curi- 
osities were  found — dolls  which  moved  their  heads  and 
opened  and  shut  their  eyes,  golden  sheep  with  little 
lambs  by  their  sides,  candied  citron-peel  and  sugar- 
almonds;  but  all  these  would  not  console  the  king.  His 
despair  was  so  violent  that  he  tore  his  beard;  and  the 
queen  kept  him  company  by  tearing  her  hair,  for,  sooth 
to  say.  the  diadem  and  poniard  wera  more  valuable  than 
ten  cities  as  large  as  Madrid. 

When  the  king  saw  that  there  were  no  hopes  of  find- 


344  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

ing  either  the  diadem  or  the  poniard  he  said  to  the 
queen:  "My  love,  let  us  take  courage  and  hasten  to  finish 
the  ceremony  which  has  already  cost  us  so  dearly."  He 
asked  therefore  for  the  princess,  when  her  nurse,  stepping 
forward,  said: 

"I  assure  your  majesty  that  I  have  been  looking  for 
her  more  than  two  hours,  and  cannot  find  her." 

These  words  filled  the  cup  of  the  king  and  queen's 
grief;  the  latter  began  to  cry  like  an  eagle  whose  young 
ones  have  been  carried  off,  and  swooned  away.  They  had 
the  greatest  difficulty  in  the  world  to  recover  her.  The 
maids-of-honor  and  the  young  ladies  wept,  saying: 
"What!  is  the  princess,  then,  lost?"  To  complete  the 
misfortune,  the  king  was  informed  that  the  ambassador 
Fanfarinet  had  disappeared  also,  which  last  blow  over- 
whelmed their  majesties  with  affliction. 

The  king  summoned  all  his  counselors  and  men-at- 
arms.  He  and  the  queen  entered  a  large  saloon  which 
had  been  promptly  hung  with  black;  they  had  taken  off 
their  fine  clothes,  and  had  each  put  on  a  mourning  robe. 
When  they  were  seen  in  this  state  there  was  not  a  heart 
so  hard  that  it  was  not  ready  to  break;  the  saloon  re- 
sounded with  sobs  and  sighs.  At  the  end  of  a  few  min- 
utes the  king  said:  "My  friends,  I  have  lost  my  dear 
daughter  Maia;  the  queen's  diadem  and  my  poniard, 
which  are  worth  an  empire,  have  disappeared  with  her, 
as  likewise  the  ambassador  Fanfarinet.  I  am  sorely 
afraid  that  when  the  king  his  master  hears  the  news  he 
will  come  to  seek  him  among  us,  and  that  he  will  accuse 
us  of  having  had  him  put  to  death.  Still,  I  would  have 
patience  if  I  had  money;  but  I  confess  to  you  that  the 
wedding  expenses  have  ruined  me.  Consult,  then,  my 
dear  subjects,  on  what  I  must  do  to  recover  my  daughter 
and  Fanfarinet." 

Everybody  admired  the  king's  fine  harangue;  he  had 
never  been  so  eloquent  before.  Lord  Gambilla,  chancel- 
lor of  the  kingdom,  rose  and  said:  "Sire,  we  are  all  over- 
whelmed by  the  misfortune  that  has  happened  to  you, 
and  we  would  have  willingly  sacrificed  even  our  wives 
and  little  children  to  have  averted  such  a  terrible  calam- 
ity; it  is  doubtless  a  trick  of  the  Fairy  Carabosse.  The 
princess  has  not  yet  completed  her  twentieth  year;  and 
since  it  must  be  said,  I  remarked  that  she  was  continu- 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  345 

ally  looking  at  Fanfarinet,  and  that  he  looked  as  con- 
tinually at  her;  perhaps  love  has  had  no  small  share  in 
what  has  just  taken  place." 

At  these  words  the  queen,  who  was  very  passionate, 
interrupted  him:  "Take  care  what  you  advance,"  said 
she,  "my  Lord  Gambilla;  know  that  the  princess  is  not 
at  all  likely  to  fall  in  love  with  Fanfarinet;  I  have  brought 
her  up  too  well." 

Hereupon  the  nurse,  who  had  listened  to  all  that 
passed,  came  and  knelt  before  the  king  and  queen,  say- 
ing: "I  have  come  to  inform  you  of  what  has  happened. 
The  princess  was  determined  either  to  see  Fanfarinet  or 
to  die;  we  made  a  little  hole  in  the  wall  of  her  tower, 
through  which  she  saw  him,  and  she  immediately  swore 
that  she  would  marry  no  one  but  him." 

At  this  news  the  grief  was  universal;  while  all  allowed 
that  Chancellor  Gambilla  had  great  penetration.  The 
queen,  in  violent  anger,  scolded  the  nurse,  the  foster- 
sister,  and  all  the  princess'  other  attendants,  and  wanted 
to  have  them  strangled. 

Admiral  Epaulette,  interrupting  the  queen,  cried  out: 
"Let  us  hasten  after  Fanfarinet;  no  doubt  that  wretch 
has  carried  off  our  princess." 

Everybody  clapped  their  hands,  answering:  "Yes, 
hasten  after  him."  Then,  while  some  went  to  sea, 
others  went  from  kingdom  to  kingdom,  beating  drums 
and  sounding  trumpets;  when  a  crowd  had  assembled 
round  them  they  cried:  "He  who  wishes  to  earn  ten 
thousand  pieces  of  gold  has  only  to  give  an  intelligence 
of  Princess  Maia,  who  has  been  carried  off  by  Fanfar- 
inet." 

They  were  invariably  answered:  "You  must  go  else- 
where; none  of  us  have  seen  them." 

Those  who  pursued  the  princess  by  sea  were  more  suc- 
cessful, for  after  a  long  voyage  they  observed  one  night 
something  ahead  which  burned  like  a  large  fire.  They 
were  afraid  to  approach  it  in  ignorance  of  what  it  might 
be;  but  all  at  once  this  light  stopped  at  the  desert  Isle 
of  Squirrels;  in  fact,  it  was  the  princess  and  her  lover, 
with  the  carbuncle  that  shone  so  brilliantly.  They  dis- 
embarked, and  after  giving  a  hufldred  gold  crowns  to 
the  good  man  who  had  brought  them,  they  wished  him 
good-by,  and  forbade  him  to  say  a  word  to  any  one, 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES,  347 

The  first  objects  that  he  fell  in  with  were  the  king's 
-.,  and  he  no  sooner  made  them  out  than  he  tried  to 
avoid  them.  But  the  admiral  perceived  him,  and  dis- 
patched a  boat  after  him,  and  the  good  man  waa  so  old 
and  infirm  that  he  was  too  weak  to  row  away.  The  boat 
soon  came  up  with  him,  and  he  waa  conducted  to  Ad- 
miral Epaulette,  who  had  him  searched;  the  hundred 
gold  crowns  were  found  on  him  quite  new,  for  IT. 
had  been  coined  expressly  for  the  princess'  wedding. 
The  admiral  questioned  him,  and,  to  avoid  answering,  ne 
pretended  to  be  deaf  and  dumb.  "Come/7  said  the 
admiral,  "lash  this  dumb  man  to  the  mainmast,  and  give 
him  three  dozen:  it  is  the  best  remedy  in  the  world  for 
dumb  people."  When  the  old  man  saw  that  it  was  all  in 
earnest,  he  confessed  that  a  young  lady  more  celestial 
than  human,  and  an  accomplished  gentleman,  had  com- 
manded him  to  conduct  them  to  the  desert  Isle  of  Squir- 
rels. At  these  words  the  admiral  concluded  that  the 
princess  was  in  his  power;  he  gave  orders  for  his  fleet  to 
surround  the  island. 

Meanwhile  Maia,  fatigued  by  her  voyage,  sat  down 
under  the  trees;  Fanfarinet  lay  at  full  length,  and  sup- 
ported his  head  on  his  hand,  but,  being  hungry,  he  did 
not  sleep,  and  presently  said  to  her:  "Do  yon  think, 
madam,  that  I  can  long  remain  here?  I  see  nothing  to 
eat;  though  you  were  more  beautiful  than  Aurora,  that 
would  not  be  sufficient  for  me:  I  must  have  something 
to  eat;  I  have  long  teeth  and  am  very  hungry/' 

"What,  Fanfarinet!"  replied  she,"  "is  it  possible  thai 
the  marks  of  my  friendship  have  made  no  impression 
upon  you  ?  Is  it  possible  that  you  are  not  satisfied  with 
your  good  fortune?" 

"lam  rather  dissatisfied  with  my  misfortune,"  cried 
he;  "would  to  heaven  that  you  were  still  in  your  black 
tower!" 

"Handsome  Fanfarinet."  said  she  to  him  graciously, 
"I  entreat  you  not  to  be  angry;  I  will  search  high  and 
low;  perhaps  I  may  find  some  frait  for  you/* 

"Perhaps,"  answered  he,  "you  may  find  a  wolf  who 
will  eat  you  up!" 

The  sorrowful  princess  ran  into  the  wood,  tearij:  e 
fine  clothes  with  the  brambles  and  her  fair  skin  with  the 
thorns;  she  was  scratched  just  as  if  she  had  been  playing 


348  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

with  cats— see  what  happens  of  falling  in  love;  nothing 
but  evil  ever  comes  of  it.  After  running  far  and  near 
she  sorrowfully  returned  to  Fanfarinet,  and  told  him 
that  she  could  find  nothing;  he  turned  on  his  heel  and 
left  her,  grumbling  between  his  teeth. 

Their  search  the  next  day  was  equally  fruitless;  so 
that  they  were  three  whole  days  without  taking  any  food 
excepting  leaves,  and  a  few  may-flies.  The  princess  did 
not  complain,  although  she  was  much  the  more  delicate  of 
the  two.  "I  should  be  contented,"  said  she  to  him, 
"were  I  alone  suffering,  and  I  should  not  even  regret 
dying  with  hunger,  provided  that  you  were  well  supplied 
with  good  cheer." 

"I  should  be  quite  indifferent,"  answered  Fanfarinet, 
"as  to  whether  you  lived  or  died,  provided  I  had  where- 
withal to  satisfy  my  appetite." 

"Is  it  possible,"  rejoined  she,  "that  my  death  would 
move  you  so  little?  Is  this  in  accordance  with  your 
vows?" 

"There  is  a  wide  difference,"  said  he,  "between  a  man 
at  his  ease,  who  is  neither  hungry  nor  thirsty,  and  an 
unfortunate  ready  to  die  in  a  desert  isle." 

"I  am  in  the  same  danger,"  said  she,  "and  do  not 
complain." 

"Complain,  indeed!"  replied  he  roughly;  "you  have 
thought  proper  to  leave  your  father  and  mother  to 
ramble  about;  and  here  we  are  in  a  pretty  pickle!" 

"But  it  is  for  love  of  you  that  I  have  done  so,  Fan- 
farinet," said  she,  offering  him  her  hand. 

"I  could  very  well  have  done  without  your  love,"  said 
he;  and  thereupon  he  turned  upon  his  heel  and  left  her 
again. 

The  beautiful  princess,  fatigued  beyond  measure  with 
grief,  began  to  cry  so  piteously  that  it  might  have  sof- 
tened a  rock.  She  sat  down  at  the  foot  of  a  rose-tree 
which  was  loaded  with  white  and  red  roses.  After  look- 
ing at  them  some  time,  she  addressed  them  as  follows: 

How  happy  you  must  be,  young  flowers!  The  zephyrs 
breathe  upon  you,  the  dew  moistens  you,  the  sun  beauti- 
fies you,  the  trees  cherish  you,  your  thorns  defend  you, 
and  everybody  admires  you.  Alas!  and  must  you  be 
more  happy  than  I?"  This  reflection  made  her  shed  so 
many  tears  that  the  foot  of  the  rose-tree  was  quite 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  349 

moistened  by  them.  She  then  saw  with  astonishment 
the  rose-bush  begin  to  move,  the  roses  to  open,  and 
heard  the  finest  of  them  say  to  her: 

"If  you  had  not  fallen  in  love  your  fate  would  have 
been  as  enviable  as  mine;  Love  exposes  his  votaries  to 
the  severest  misfortunes.  Poor  princess!  take  from  the 
hollow  of  yonder  tree  the  honeycomb  that  you  will  find 
there;  but  do  not  be  so  silly  when  you  have  got  it  as  to 
give  any  of  it  to  Fanfarinet." 

She  ran  to  the  tree,  uncertain  whether  she  were  awake 
or  dreaming.  She  found  the  honey  and  immediately 
took  it  to  her  ungrateful  lover.  "Here  is  a  large  honey- 
comb," said  she  to  him;  "I  might  have  eaten  it  myself, 
but  I  preferred  to  share  it  with  you." 

Without  thanking  her,  or  even  looking  at  her,  he 
snatched  it  from  her  hand  and  ate  it  all  up,  refusing  to  give 
her  even  the  smallest  piece.  He  even  added  raillery  to 
his  brutality;  he  told  her  that  it  was  too  sweet,  and  would 
spoil  her  teeth,  with  a  dozen  similar  impertinences. 

Maia,  more  afflicted  than  she  had  yet  been,  seated  her- 
self under  an  oak-tree,  and  paid  it  a  compliment  similar 
to  that  she  had  made  to  the  rose-tree.  The  oak-tree, 
moved  with  compassion,  bent  down  a  branch  to  her  ear 
and  said:  "It  were  a  pity  that  you  should  die,  fair  Maia; 
take  that  jug  of  milk  into  the  wood,  and  do  not  give  a 
drop  of  it  to  your  ungrateful  lover." 

The  princess,  in  astonishment,  looked  behind  her,  and 
saw  a  large  jug  full  of  milk;  she  then  thought  only  of 
the  thirst  from  which  Panfarinet  was  suffering  after  eat- 
ing full  fifteen  pounds  of  honey,  and  so  ran  to  him  with 
the  jug.  "Quench  your  thirst,  handsome  Fanfarinet," 
said  she,  "and  do  not  forget  to  leave  me  a  drop,  for  I  am 
dying  with  hunger  and  thirst." 

He  readily  took  the  jug  from  her,  and  drank  off  the 
contents  at  a  draught;  then,  throwing  it  on  the  ground, 
he  broke  it  in  pieces,  saying  with  a  malignant  smile: 
"As  you  have  had  nothing  to  eat,  you  cannot  be  thirsty." 

The  priucess  clasped  her  hands;  and  raising  her  bright 
eyes  to  heaven: 

"Ah!"  cried  she,  "I  have  deserved  it  all;  this  is  a  just 
punishment  for  having  quitted  the,  king  and  queen,  and 
tor  falling  so  heedlessly  in  love  with  a  man  whom  I  did 
not  know,  and  for  having  eloped  with  him,  forgetful  of 


350  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

my  rank  and  the  misfortune  with  which  I  was  menaced 
by  Carabosse."  She  then  began  to  weep  more  bitterly 
than  she  had  ever  done  in  her  life,  and  diving  into  the 
thickest  part  of  the  wood,  she  sank  through  weakness  at 
the  foot  of  an  elm  on  which  a  nightingale  was  perched 
singing  most  melodiously.  * 'Cheer  up,"  said  the  night- 
ingale to  her,  "and  look  in  this  bush;  you  will  find  there 
excellent  sweetmeats  and  tartlets  fresh  from  Paris;  but  do 
not  be  so  imprudent  as  to  give  Fanfarinet  any  of  them." 
The  princess  did  not  need  this  caution;  she  had  not  for- 
gotten the  two  last  tricks  he  had  played  her,  and  she  was 
so  hungry  that  she  ate  up  all  the  tartlets.  The  greedy 
Fanfarinet,  having  observed  her  eating,  flew  into  so  vio- 
lent a  passion  that  he  ran,  sword  in  hand,  liis  eyes 
sparkling  with  rage,  to  slay  her.  She  hastily  uncovered 
the  jewel  of  her  headdress  which  rendered  her  invisible, 
and  running  away  from  him,  reproached  him  for  his  in- 
gratitude in  terms  which  showed  sufficiently  that  she 
could  not  even  then  hate  him. 

In  the  meantime  Admiral  Epaulette  had  dispatched 
Jack  Rattle,  in  his  straw  boots,  king's  messenger  in  ordi- 
nary, to  inform  the  king  that  the  princess  and  Fanfarinet 
had  landed  on  the  Isle  of  Squirrels;  but,  not  knowing 
the  country,  he  would  not  effect  a  landing  for  fear  of 
ambuscades.  At  this  news,  which  made  their  majesties 
very  glad,  the  king  sent  for  a  large  book,  every  leaf  of 
which  was  six  ells  long;  it  was  the  masterpiece  of  a 
learned  fairy,  and  contained  a  description  of  all  the 
world.  On  consulting  it,  he  immediately  ascertained 
that  the  Isle  of  Squirrels  was  uninhabited.  "Go,"  said 
he  to  Jack  Rattle,  "and  order  the  admiral  in  my  name  to 
land  immediately;  it  has  been  bad  management  on  his 
part,  and  on  mine  also,  to  leave  my  daughter  so  long 
with  Fanfarinet." 

Directly  Jack  Rattle  arrived  at  the  fleet  the  admiral 
caused  drums  and  kettledrums  to  be  beaten,  trumpets 
to  be  sounded,  and  the  band  to  commence  playing  their 
hautboys,  flutes,  violins,  hurdy-gurdies,  organs,  and  gui- 
tars; they  made  a  desperate  din,  for  instruments  of  war 
and  peace  were  heard  all  over  the  isle.  The  princess, 
alarmed  at  this  noise,  ran  to  her  lover  to  offer  him  her 
assistance;  their  mutual  danger  speedily  reconciled  them. 
"Keep  behind  me,"  said  she  to  him;  "I  will  walk  first 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  351 

with  the  invisible  stone  uncovered,  and  will  use  my 
father's  poniard  to  slay  the  enemy,  while  you  kill  them 
with  your  sword." 

The  invisible  princess  advanced  among  the  soldiers; 
she  and  Fanfarinet  slew  them  without  being  seen;  noth- 
ing was  to  be  heard  but  cries  of  "lam  dead,  I  am  dying." 
The  soldiers  in  vain  fired  their  muskets;  they  always 
missed  their  mark,  for  the  princess  and  her  lover  dived 
like  ducks,  and  the  bullets  passed  over  their  heads.  At 
last  the  admiral,  grieved  at  losing  so  many  men  in  so  ex- 
traordinary a  manner,  without  even  knowing  who  was 
attacking  him,  or  how  to  defend  himself,  sounded  a  re- 
treat, and  returned  on  board  his  vessels  to  consult  on 
what  steps  should  next  be  taken. 

Night  was  already  far  advanced;  the  princess  and 
Fanfarinet  had  taken  refuge  in  the  thickest  part  of  the 
wood.  She  was  so  tired  that  she  stretched  herself  on  the 
grass  and  was  falling  asleep  when  she  heard  a  low  whisper 
in  her  ear:  "Save  yourself,  Maia,  for  Fanfarinet  wishes 
to  kill  and  eat  you."  Quickly  opening  her  eyes  she  saw, 
by  the  light  of  her  carbuncle,  the  wicked  Fanfarinet, 
with  his  arm  raised  ready  to  pierce  her  bosom  with  his 
sword;  for,  seeing  her  so  fair  and  plump,  and  having  a 
good  appetite,  he  was  going  to  put  her  to  death  and  eat 
her.  She  did  not  hesitate  as  to  what  course  she  should 
take:  she  softly  drew  her  poniard,  which  she  had  kept 
since  the  battle,  and  gave  him  so  deadly  a  blow  in  the 
eye  that  it  killed  him  on  the  spot.  "Die,  ingrate!" 
cried  she;  "receive  this  last  favor  as  one  that  you  have 
richly  deserved;  be  for  the  future  an  example  to  perfidious 
lovers,  and  may  your  faithless  heart  never  enjoy  repose." 

When  her  first  burst  of  passion  was  over  and  she  re- 
membered the  condition  she  was  in,  she  was  almost  as 
dead  as  he  whom  she  had  just  killed.  "What  will  be- 
come of  me?"  cried  she,  weeping.  "I  am  alone  on  this 
isle;  the  wild  beasts  will  devour  me  if  I  do  not  die  of 
hunger:"  she  was  almost  sorry  that  she  had  not  allowed 
Fanfarinet  to  eat  her.  She  sat  down  trembling,  and 
anxiously  awaited  the  daybreak,  for  she  was  afraid  of  the 
spirits,  and  especially  of  the  nightmare. 

As  she  was  leaning  against  a  tr^e,  and  looking  in  the 
air,  she  observed  at  a  great  distance  from  the  ground  a 
handsome  golden  chariot,  drawn  by  six  large  tufted  hens; 


352  OLD,  OLl}  FAIRY  TALES. 

the  coachman  was  a  cock,  and  a  fat  pullet  the  postilion. 
In  the  chariot  was  seated  a  lady,  whose  charms  were 
more  resplendent  thr.n  the  sun;  her  clothes  were  em- 
broidered with  gold  spangles  and  little  ingots  of  silver. 
Maia  saw  another  chariot  drawn  by  six  bats;  the  coach- 
man was  a  raven,  and  the  postilion  a  snail.  In  it  was  a 
frightful  little  baboon,  dressed  in  a  serpent's  skin,  and 
wearing  on  her  head  a  large  toad,  which  served  her  for  a 
topknot. 

Never,  never,  was  any  one  so  surprised  as  was  the 
princess.  As  she  was  considering  how  these  marvels 
would  end,  she  observed  the  chariots  advance  one  toward 
the  other;  and  the  fine  lady  holding  a  gilded  spear  in 
her  hand,  and  the  ugly  one  a  rusty  pike  in  hers,  they 
commenced  a  fierce  combat  which  lasted  more  than  a 
quarter  of  an  hour.  Presently  the  handsome  lady  was 
victorious;  and  her  opponent  hastened  from  the  scene 
of  action  with  her  bats.  At  the  same  time  the  hand- 
some lady  alighted,  and  addressing  Maia,  said: 

"Do  not  be  afraid,  amiable  princess;  I  have  only  vis- 
ited this  isle  to  be  of  service  to  you;  the  combat  that  I 
have  had  with  Carabosse  has  been  fought  for  love  of  you. 
She  wished  to  gain  the  day  that  she  might  flog  you  for 
leaving  your  tower  four  days  before  the  completion  of 
the  twenty  years;  but  you  saw  that  I  took  your  part,  and 
that  I  have  driven  her  away:  enjoy  the  happiness  I  have 
acquired  for  you." 

The  grateful  princess  prostrated  herself  before  her. 
"Many  thanks,  great  queen  of  the  fairies,"  said  she, 
"your  generosity  overpowers  me;  I  do  not  know  how  to 
tnank  you,  but  I  feel  that  I  have  not  a  drop  of  blood 
that  you  have  just  preserved  which  is  not  at  your 
service." 

The  fairy  embraced  her  three  times,  and  made  her  still 
more  beautiful  than  she  had  been,  were  such  a  thing  pos- 
sible. She  ordered  her  cock  to  go  to  the  king's  vessels, 
and  tell  the  admiral  to  land  without  fear,  and  dispatched 
her  fat  pullet  to  her  palace  to  fetch  the  finest  clothes  that 
were  ever  seen  for  Maia. 

When  the  admiral  heard  the  news  that  the  cock 
brought  he  was  so  enraptured  that  he  nearly  went  into  a 
fever.  He  instantly  landed  on  the  isle  with  all  his  peo- 
ple; Jack  Rattle,  seeing  the  haste  in  which  everybody 


OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES.  353 

quitted  the  vessels,  joined  the  throng,  carrying  on  his 
shoulder  a  spit  loaded  with  game. 

Admiral  Epaulette  had  hardly  proceeded  three  miles 
up  the  country,  when  he  perceived  on  a  highroad  in  the 
wood  the  chariot  drawn  by  hens,  and  the  two  ladies  who 
were  walking.  He  recognized  the  princess,  and  hastened 
to  throw  himself  at  her  feet;  but  he  was  stopped  by  Maia 
herself,  who  told  him  that  all  his  homage  was  due  to  the 
generous  fairy,  who  had  saved  her  from  Carabosse's 
claws;  so  he  kissed  the  hem  of  her  robe,  and  paid  her 
the  handsomest  compliments  that  were  ever  pronounced 
on  a  similar  occasion.  While  he  was  speaking  the  fairy 
interrupted  him,  and  cried:  "I  declare  I  smell  roast 
meat." 

"Yes,  madam,"  answered  Jack  Rattle,  showing  her 
the  spit  loaded  with  nice  game;  "it  only  remains  for  your 
highness  to  taste  it." 

"Then  serve  it  up  immediately,  by  all  means,"  said 
she,  "less  for  me  than  the  princess,  who  is  in  want  of  a 
good  meal." 

Then  all  the  other  requisites  were  sent  from  the  vessels; 
and  the  joy  at  having  found  the  princess,  joined  to  the 
good  cheer,  left  nothing  to  be  wished  for. 

The  repast  being  over,  and  the  fat  pullet  having  re- 
turned, the  fairy  dressed  Maia  in  a  robe  of  green  and  cloth 
of  gold,  spangled  with  rubies  and  pearls;  she  confined  her 
fair  hair  with  diamond  and  emerald  bands,  crowned  her 
with  flowers,  and  assisting  her  into  her  own  chariot,  all 
the  stars  who  saw  her  pass  took  her  for  Aurora,  though 
it  was  not  then  daybreak,  and  said  to  her  as  they  passed: 
"Good-morning,  Madam  Aurora." 

After  the  most  tender  adieus  between  the  fairy  and  the 
princess,  the  latter  said:  "But,  madam,  must  I  not  tell 
my  mother  the  queen  who  it  is  that  has  done  me  such 
kindness?'* 

"Beautiful  princess,"  answered  the  fairy,  "embrace 
her  for  me,  and  tell  her  that  I  am  the  fifth  fairy  who 
endowed  you  at  your  birth." 

When  the  princess  was  on  board  the  admiral's  ship  a 
royal  salute,  of  upward  of  a  hundred  guns  and  a  thou- 
sand rockets,  was  discharged.  She  arrived  safely  in  port, 
and  found  the  king  and  queen  waiting  for  her  with  the 
utmost  impatience;  they  received  her  with  so  many 


354  OLD,  OLD  FAIRY  TALES. 

caresses  that  they  did  not  give  her  time  to  ask  pardon 
for  her  past  folly,  although  she  threw  herself  at  their  feet 
directly  she  saw  them;  paternal  kindness  triumphed,  and 
old  Carabosse  was  blamed  for  it  all. 

At  the  same  time  the  son  of  the  great  King  Merlin 
arrived,  uneasy  at  not  having  received  any  news  from  his 
ambassador.  He  had  a  thousand  horses,  and  thirty 
lackeys,  well  dressed  in  scarlet  and  rich  gold  lace;  he 
was  a  hundred  times  more  charming  than  the  ungrateful 
Fanfarinet.  Care  was  taken  not  to  inform  him  that  the 
princess  had  been  carried  off,  as  that  might  perhaps  have 
given  him  offence;  he  was  told,  very  plausibly,  that  his 
ambassador,  being  thirsty,  and  wishing  to  draw  some  water 
to  drink,  had  fallen,  in  the  act  of  doing  so,  into  a  well, 
and  was  drowned.  He  easily  believed  it,  and  the  wed- 
ding was  celebrated  so  joyfully  that  it  effaced  the 
remembrance  of  all  the  past  sorrows. 


THIS  BOOK  IS  DUE  ON  THE  LAST  DATE 
STAMPED  BELOW 

AN  INITIAL  FINE  OF  25  CENTS 

WILL  BE  ASSESSED  FOR  FAILURE  TO  RETURN 
THIS  BOOK  ON  THE  DATE  DUE.  THE  PENALTY 
WILL  INCREASE  TO  5O  CENTS  ON  THE  FOURTH 
DAY  AND  TO  $1.OO  ON  THE  SEVENTH  DAY 
OVERDUE. 


RETTPNF-D  TO      • 

1          OCT   4  1945 

MTHRO  LIB. 

I         aAutfWLT 

MAR  1  5  1972 

JULS  0  |: 

t     13K61MX 

1                  •— 

R  ?,  9  1972  54      1 

1        JUN  3  0  1961 

1 

K          fen  c       WTH-^-d 

1 

FEB  6    iw 

I            ftfc^B.^-^ 

1  wBvnf 

f*»    • 
•            i_H^*:*  tWfc*^7--1 

-^|9^ 

atbD  u>  M/s? 

^672  -6PM  61  1 

I      BEC'D  LD    f- 

-5  PM7 

U>"iae  K    INK 

t  •  .  .  • 

m 

LD  21-100m-"l2,  '43  (8796s) 

Y8  20037 


903949 


1/3 


THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  UBRARY 


